


Silver Lake Series (3) - Sweethearts

by Fleppy85



Series: Silver Lake Series [3]
Category: CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-06-29
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:22:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 129,910
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24974524
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fleppy85/pseuds/Fleppy85
Summary: A baby disappears from a newborn ward. Soon afterwards a second one gets kidnapped at home and while Sofia, after her accident a CSI again, and Greg investigate, the kidnapper comes to Greg's house, where an advanced in pregnancy Jules is. Will Sara see her godchild or will the kidnapper get them?
Relationships: Sofia Curtis/Sara Sidle
Series: Silver Lake Series [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1807690





	1. Chapter 1

Sunday, 4th of December

Six months. Sometimes it was a long time, sometimes it was a short time. Half a year. There were times when Sofia felt, half a year was an eternity. During high school, the last half year was hell, same for the first half year at police academy. Too many tests, too much pressure, too many new things she had to remember, no time for friends and fun. Or her last half year as a CSI, demoted and unhappy on her new shift, away from her colleagues, stuck in a team that didn’t seem to like her, didn’t want her in and blamed her for being split up. Today it’s been half a year, six months, that she lost her lower left leg. On the fourth of June twelve men first open fire on tourists, worker and bystander at the Hollywood and Highland Center before they blew the building and with it, all the people in and around off. Over three hundred lost their lives, Sofia, outside, on her way to find a place to answer the fire, end the shooting, lost her lower left leg.   
Since that day her life had changed. Again. She wasn’t a cop anymore. Didn’t want to. With her physical condition it was impossible to work outside, all her boss could offer her was a job inside. Office work. Yes, there was the chance to become a captain but Sofia wasn’t an office person. She needed fresh air, had to be outside, go to different scenes, meet different people. Typing wasn’t her kind of work, she was an investigator. So it was the best thing to say goodbye to her beloved police job and become a CSI; again. This way she was outside, was on crime scenes and worked them. Not like a cop but she was there.   
With her friend from Las Vegas. Greg and she worked the same shift, sometimes the same cases. It was good to have him around. Years ago in Vegas it was fun to work with him, she showed him a few things, as he was new. Now he showed her all the new things, she had no clue of. And made sure she was fine, didn’t work too much.   
With her prosthesis she could do all the work, got every day better, even forgot sometimes she wore it until the pain was back. She needed painkillers, sometimes more, sometimes only one. Very seldom she tried days without medicine. Half a year wasn’t a long time when you lost your limb. Her body had to fight every day, there were scars, visible on her leg and various more all over her body from broken glass that cut into her skin when the building exploded. And invisible scars. Nightmares of this day, the pain of losing a part of your body, feeling helpless and useless sometimes.   
A lot of reasons to fight, a lot of reasons to give up. She was a fighter. And the best reason why she should continue to fight every day just walked into the room. Sara. Her lover. Two years of relationship, two years of endless love. It had never crossed her mind to leave Sara after the accident. Well, yes there were a few minutes of drowning in self-pity, being angry with herself and the world when she told Sara, she didn’t want her anymore, didn’t want her pity and be her burden. Sara, stubborn, confused and hurt, told her she’d move out the next day. Luckily Sofia's mother told them both off, made them use their head and ended the break-up before it could start. There had never been any sign of disgust in Sara’s face when she saw Sofia’s body the way it looked now. Never. Only love. And happiness that they had the chance to be together, could continue to be together, live together.   
“Good morning.”   
God, this smile. Whenever Sara smiled at her like this, Sofia felt like ice in the hot summer sun. She melted. This beautiful woman, this amazing person, was her girlfriend. Loved her. In moments like this she felt like the happiest person in the universe.   
Without speaking she pulled her lover into her arms and kissed her passionately. What lovely lips. So sweet, so soft, so much hers. Only she was allowed to kiss them. Only she was kissed by them.   
“Morning Beauty.” Why couldn’t she pull Sara in her arms, so tightly that they were one? She wanted to pull her lover inside her, have her with her the whole time. Every inch apart was an inch too much.   
“Are you all right?”  
“Now I am.” Snuggling into the arms of her lover, Sofia placed her head on Sara’s shoulder. Hold and be hold. Love and trust.   
“What was wrong before?”  
“Six months are over today. Six months ago, at this time of the day, I had both legs. Twelve hours later I lost half of my left leg.”  
“Yes.” Sara knew the date and hadn’t been sure how to react. Was she supposed to talk about the day, the event? Was it too painful for Sofia and therefore better not to mention it? It had been the worst day in their life. Sofia lost half of her leg, Sara feared for various days she had lost her lover at all. The coma, the complications. Many hours of fear, in tears, had been spent in front of hospital rooms.   
“I realized I’m a lucky woman. I lost a part of my body but I still have you. Being with you, knowing you love me, is worth much more than a leg.”  
“You won’t lose me, I love you.”  
“I love you too. You give me strength to carry on every morning I wake up next to you. Six months. First I thought I should burry myself in bed, don’t go to work, ignore the day and hope it’s over ASAP. Then I realized it’s the wrong thinking. This is another day, has nothing to do with the fourth of June. I’ll make this day a good day.”  
“That’s a better plan.”  
“It is. Do you want to have breakfast with me? To start this day like a good day?”  
“I’m starving.” Sara had taken the dogs around the reservoir for a quick morning run. “Not only for food but also for a couple of kisses.”  
“Why don’t we get ourselves breakfast and after every bite you take, you get a kiss for free? And do the same with me.”  
“I love your plans almost as much as I love you.” Sara pulled Sofia in her arms and kissed her. You needed a base to start the day or breakfast and her base were kisses of her girlfriend. 

With a smile Sara took a key out of her pocket and opened the door. Her own spare key she used for the first time. Not to her own house, no, today her first stop after work was somewhere else: Greg’s place. He and Sofia were still at work so he couldn’t let her in. Since two weeks the blonde was on the same team as Greg, worked cases with him. Her girlfriend seemed to be happy with her new job, only now and then she missed her old job what her sad eyes told Sara. The good news were so far Sofia had no problems with her prosthesis and could do most of the things she did before. Especially after their holiday trip to the Dominican Republic her mood was better and she was happier. These two weeks showed her it was still possible to enjoy life and do the things she did before.  
“Hello?” The new house of her best friend and her former therapist was held in white with colorful decoration. Not like Sofia’s house, their house had only two stories and no attic, was a little bit smaller. The three bedrooms and two bathrooms were upstairs, the kitchen, living room, a guest toilette and two little office rooms were on the first story. A little garden was in the back, big enough for their kids to play later. All in all a cozy little place, perfect for a family.   
”Couch!” She heard Jules calling.   
“Hey, wow.” She hadn’t seen Jules for over a week, another reason why she came here after work. The belly of the psychologist was huge. No wonder she wasn’t working anymore. How could she walk with something like this?  
“I know I’m fat.” Jules struggled to get up until she sat. It looked like hard work to Sara to move.   
“I never said that. You look…very…pregnant.”  
“That means I look very fat! Thanks Sara.”  
“No, you are…are you sure there are only two babies inside?” Babies were so tiny after they are born and Jules’s belly was so…not tiny. Would she give birth to a whole basketball team? Half a football team?  
“Very sure.” Jules petted on the place next to her and hugged Sara when she sat down. “Thanks for coming around.”  
“No problem.” It wasn’t like they met every day. Well, since Greg lived in Los Angeles they meet at least once a week, sometimes more often. Sara had helped a lot when they moved into the house, spent a lot of time with Greg and Jules, who had stopped working last month and could not do much in the house.   
“How was your day?”  
“Exhausting, I walked around ten miles. Since I'm a ranger I don't need the gym anymore.”  
“Why don’t you take off your shoes and put your feet up? I’m sure they’ll like that.”  
“How does that look?”  
“Like you’re at home.”  
“It’s not my home, it’s yours.”  
“Sara.” Jules chuckled. This was the home of her friends, therefore it was also her home. She was always welcome here.   
“What? Don’t give me this therapist look. I hate that.”  
Jules only smiled.   
“How was your day?” Sara rolled her eyes and kept her feet in her shoes and on the ground. Her feet complained about it, but she ignored them.  
“Boring. I sat here, walked a few yards and sat down again. These two are too heavy for my back and the rest of my body. I’m really happy when they’re out and I don’t weigh two tons anymore.”  
“You don’t weight two tons.”  
“I look like it.”  
“You look pregnant and beautiful.”  
“Does Greg pay you? Did he tell you to tell me this?”  
“No.” Sara laughed. “And even if he did I’d deny it.”  
“You’re on his side.”  
“There aren’t two sides, there’s only one side. Why don’t you and the two babies come with me? We can have a barbecue.” For the beginning of December it had been very warm today, warm enough for an early barbecue that could find its end in the living room on the couch or under a few blankets in the last sunshine of the day.   
“We will have one, here.”  
“Okay.” Most times they had their barbecues in Sofia’s garden because it was bigger and everything was there.   
“The girls will be here any time soon.”  
“The girls?” Sara almost jumped off the couch. Which girls? Why wasn’t she informed about this change of plans? As far as she knew they had a barbecue with Greg and Sofia. Which girls were invited too?  
“Yes, it’s girl’s night. I told Greg to stay out with the guys while we have fun of our own. A few friends will come over and…” The doorbell rang. “Here they are.”  
“I let them in and leave.” Girl’s night? That was worse than a double shift. Sara wasn't prepared and ready for this. She never was.   
“What? Why?”  
“Because.” I left the light on in the fridge? My freezer is running? “….you don’t need me when you have your girlfriends over.” Sara got up. Don’t look too much like you’re a runaway. Leave the building steady, confident, don't show any fear, they might bite when you pass them at the door.   
“Sara…”  
“No, it’s okay Jules.”  
“Sara…”  
“We meet another day.” When there weren’t half a dozen strange women around.   
“Why are you running away?”  
“I’m not running away, I open the door.” She wasn’t running away, she walked away. Away from the girl’s night and towards an evening in peace on her couch. With Sofia in her arms, a movie on, a beer. Perfect.   
“Come back!”  
“I will.” Sara went to the door. “Another day.”  
“Sara Sidle!”   
Sara ignored Jules, opened the door and managed a smile when she saw around half a dozen women between thirty and forty something in front of the door. The army of horror and she managed not to scream.   
“Hi, Jules is on the couch, she can’t move a lot. Come in.” Give them all explanations and an order, ignore their comments and looks, close the door behind them – from the outside and be out of this. An evening with these women wasn’t what Sara was after. It wasn’t like she didn’t like Jules’s friends…okay, she couldn’t stand most of them.   
“If you don’t come back right now it’s your fault when a very, very, very pregnant woman has to drive a car to get you back!” Jules called out from the font door.  
Sara stopped. Jules wasn’t supposed to drive anymore, she could barely fit behind the steering wheel and…it wasn’t good. The problem was, Sara knew her friend was serious about her threat.   
“Jules…”  
“Please. You don’t have to worry about Sofia, she’ll be fine to make her way here by herself. She can drive and she doesn’t want you to worry all the time. Even when that’s hard because you love her.”   
Great, now Jules offered her an excuse why she left and she called her back. Not the truth, a lie. A lie that doesn’t make Sara look stupid like reality would.   
“Okay.” Did she have another choice? No.   
“Thanks.” Jules squeezed her hand for a second before she was surrounded by her friends; or like it looked for Sara: surrounded by gaggling and cackling geese. Taking her chance to be not in the center of attention anymore she vanished in the kitchen. If she had to stay she could make herself useful and prepare some of the salads. An evening with geese, she needed a lot of green food…and maybe a goose leg later. A thought she shouldn’t have as a vegetarian.   
Washing green salad, cutting green, red and yellow pepper, cucumber, fruits and rolling corn cobs in aluminum foil she was almost done when a hand was placed on her shoulder.   
“You’re not the chef.” Jules’s voice was softly. It had the same soft tone that got Sara out of bad memories when she was her patient. One of the reasons why she stayed with Jules, this voice that made her relax and feel no matter what happened, there was somebody with her who would find a solution to every problem.   
“I enjoy doing this.”  
“More than being in the garden with the others?”  
“Yes.” Why deny the obvious? Jules always knew when she lied or expanded the truth, like Sara described it once. They weren’t doctor and patient anymore but the tall brunette could still read her like an open book.  
“If you really want to go, do it. I tell them Sofia called and needed your help.”  
“You shouldn’t lie to your friends.”  
“I also don’t want a friend of mine unhappy.”  
“Sorry.” Sara put away the bowl with the mixed salad.   
“Wanna tell me why you don’t like them?”  
“Because I’m stupid.”  
“No, you’re not. And claiming that makes me think, you believe I’m stupid. Otherwise you couldn’t believe I’d believe it. Why don’t we continue and be honest to each other? That worked out perfectly the last two years, don’t you think?” No accuse, no resignation, only a friendly and warm question.   
“Some of them look at me like I’m a…nutcase. They know why we know each other, they know I was your client, there’s no way we could keep that a secret, they know about Greg, they know Greg and me are friends. I…I feel like a patient when they’re around. Like they are watching for some kind of strange behavior, what a loony like me is supposed to do.”  
“You’re not a nutcase and not a loony.” Jules pulled Sara in her arms. “You’re my friend, you’re the best friend of my fiancé and the godmother of one of my twins. If one of them looks at you like you belong in a loony bin, tell me and I’ll tell her off. Probably they know you were a patient, I never told them, but as you said, it’s easy to guess. If they wait for any strange behavior, they should change their jobs. At least the shrinks of them. They should know better. You’re a normal person, Sara. At least when it comes to the crazy part. Otherwise you’re a special person, that’s why you’re my friend.”  
“But…”  
“Hey, who is the best shrink in town?”  
“You.” Sara smiled.  
“So when I tell you you’re totally normal, what does that mean?”  
“You’re my friend.”  
“And you’re normal because I’m right. Do you want to go home or come out with me? I protect you from all these mean bitches outside.”  
“You always protect and take care of me.” And it never felt bad, like she was depended.   
“That’s what friends are for.” Jules put her arm around Sara and pulled her out of the kitchen into the garden.   
“I thought you got lost.” Annabelle said to Jules.   
“No, I was looking for a way to thank Sara for her help, she prepared all the salads. How far are you with the barbecue?”  
“It’s working…kind of.” Jenny answered.   
When Sara saw the tiny little flame that was supposed to cook the meat for the women, she was glad she had her salads. If this flame survived it would never give enough heat to cook a steak. Not one that wasn’t very English. Sofia would roll her eyes, push them all away and show them how to use a barbecue.   
“Honey, we will be very hungry tonight or we all eat rare meat with this flame.” Jules chuckled. She thought the same like Sara.   
“Sorry, Bob starts the BBQ at home. Can’t she do it? She should be able to do it.” Jenny pointed to Sara.   
“And is this because she’s an intelligent woman or because she’s involved with a woman, therefore a lesbian, and they know things like that?” Jules answered for Sara. Immediately the face of the blonde woman turned deep red.  
“I…I didn’t mean…”  
“Listen Jenny, or all of you. Sara is my friend. Yes, she was my patient and we are aware it’s not supposed to be that you’re friend with your former patient but she’s the best friend of my fiancé. I won’t stick to the rule because in this case it’s ridiculous. I can’t asked Greg not to see her, to invite her, nor am I willing to stay away from most of his friends, because they are all connected to Sara. And she is just as crazy as all of us because we all have our therapists. You better get yourself together and be nice to her or you’ll be all not invited to my first baby party because she’ll be the godmother of one and therefore she’ll be invited. Am I clear?” She looked at each one of her friends.   
Sara wasn’t sure if she was happy that Jules spoke up for her or embarrassed. She was glad her friend supported her, on the other side she was a little bit unsure if this was the right way. Then again, Jules knew her friends, she knew how to talk to them…hell, talking was what she made her living with.   
“Now Sara, do you have any idea how to get the barbecue started? Or do we have to eat most of your salad which will leave all of us hungry. I was a girl’s scout I know how to make fire but I’m afraid I need to sit down, my back and feet are killing me.”  
“We make fire quite often for our tourist groups in the park, I think I can fix it.”  
“Thanks. Your godchild needs a steak…you can try to turn one or both of them into a vegetarian when they’re older. I’d like to have little meat eater until they’re twelve or so.”  
“Why don’t we let them make their own decision?”  
“Sounds good to me.” Jules blinked at Sara. And if her friends weren’t nice to Sara after she told them off, she’d kick them out. For a bunch of doctors, therapists and other – apparently educated women – they behaved a little bit stupid. 

“Gosh, I’m so happy you’re here.” Sara pulled Sofia in her arms and kissed her. When she heard the door bell in Jules’s garden, it was clear, the new CSI finished her shift and was ready to have dinner with them. Ready to be with Sara, safe her, back her up.   
“Hey…everything all right?”  
“Now it is.”  
“Sorry, I had to work overtime…was it very bad?” Sofia knew her lover didn’t feel comfortable when Jules’s friends were around. Unfortunately Greg told her only an hour ago that it was a girl’s night and not a cozy little barbecue party. When she said goodbye to Sara in the morning, she was sure they’d have a cozy barbecue night tonight, not a girl’s night.  
“I tried to run away first, Jules stopped me. Then I hid in the kitchen, she came in there, I told her why I don’t feel comfortable around them, we went out and she made it clear that if they’re not nicer they won’t get invited to the first baby party. And that our friendship is more important to her than rules.”  
“I told you two years ago she’s very protective when it comes to you, I’m still a little bit jealous she can make you do things you don’t stand and do these things for her. I’m your girlfriend, you should only do things you can’t stand for me because you love me. But I’ll forget my jealousy. Do you want to run away with me or shall we join them?”  
“We go in, you want to see her. And her baby belly”  
“It’s been a week…” Her new job gave her hardly any time to socialize. When she wasn’t working on cases she tried to learn everything about the new machines in the lab, she didn’t know. So many things changed since she had been a CSI in Las Vegas, so many new things appeared, made her work life easier.   
“Yeah and she looks so pregnant.”  
“Are you saying our friend is fat?” The blonde grinned.   
“No, she’s pregnant. Why does everybody think I call her fat?” Pregnant women couldn’t be fat, they were pregnant and that made them beautiful. They glow with anticipation, smiled the whole time and sprayed happiness all over the place and the people who surrounded them.  
“Maybe because of your words. Try some other words like …she looks really great and…no, there are no nice words.”  
“Pregnancy suits her, she’s glowing with excitement and happiness.”  
“I told you over two years ago, she’s sexy.” Sofia grinned.   
“Hey!” Sara bopped her lover, got her arm around the blonde’s waist and pulled her with her into the garden.  
“You’re late, CSI Curtis.” Jules greeted her friend.   
“Sorry doc, I had to work. You look…happy.” And her belly was really, really big.   
“Your better half called me fat.”  
“I’m sure she said something else.”  
“I understood what she meant and she’s right, I look like an elephant only my ears are smaller and I haven’t grown ivory. Can I offer you something to eat? Before I eat everything myself and nothing is left for you.”  
“Why don’t you have a seat and I get myself something?” Sofia hugged Jules and whispered in her ear: “Thanks for taking care of my girlfriend.”  
“My pleasure. How’s Greg?”  
“He and Don are out for some billiard. I think they enjoy their boy’s night out as much as we enjoy the girl’s night.”  
“Good.”  
“Ladies, do you know what I have in here?” Teegan held up a backpack. The smile on her face told them, it was something they’d all enjoy.   
“What is it?”  
“Show us!”  
“I was shopping today and guess what I found…the new line of Sweet Peaches. Two dozen of different things, all for us.” The gaggle changed into squeaking. Sara looked at Sofia, a huge question mark on her face. A line of sweet peaches? Why was that so special? Weren’t peaches sweet all the time?   
When Teegan turned her bag upside down there weren’t any peaches falling on the table. It was a collection of make up. Sofia hid a smile when she heard her lover sighing and knew, without looking at her, she rolled her eyes. Very soon Sara would find an excuse why she and Sofia had to go home …although Sofia wouldn’t mind trying some of these things. She couldn’t get points for her sexy swagger anymore, since she had her prosthesis the swagger wasn’t sexy, so she needed some really nice eyes. Or something that made people look at her already really nice eyes.

“That was horrible.” Sara dropped back and pulled the blanket over her face. Finally she was safe. In her own room, in her bed, far away from all these women and their…torture tools. The evening came close to the worst crime scenes she had ever seen. “Worse than nightmares I can remember. It’s was reality. No chance to wake up.”  
“You were brave, stayed almost until the end.” Sofia slipped under the blanket, climbed half on Sara and kissed her lover softly. Sara managed to stay two more hours, watched what they all did, kept herself out of it, denied – friendly – all the offers to try some of the products and all that without a second beer.   
“Why can women spend hours on these things?”  
“You are a woman, Sara, you should know.”  
“And I do use make up. A little bit. Some of them looked like they were on their way to Rio to celebrate carnival. And what is it with all the color around the eyes? Some of them looked like they were in a fight and lost.”  
“It’s supposed to highlight their eyes, make them the center of attention.”  
“Honey, you don’t need this, your eyes are so beautiful, you have such lovely deep blue eyes, you don’t need anything to highlight them. They are a highlight. Any color around them would ruin the perfect picture.”  
“Thanks. Did you like my deep red lips?”  
“I like your lips, no matter which color they have. To me you’re the most beautiful woman. No matter if you wear make up or step out of the shower and are without any make up, the sight of you always takes my breath away.”  
“Honey, you don’t have to charm me to get me into your bed, I’m already in our bed.”  
“I don’t charm you, I tell the truth.” Sara smiled.   
“Wrong sentence, this was your chance to get me out of my clothes and make me do whatever you want. It’s not the first time you miss such a chance. If you were a guy in high school, you would never nail a girl.”  
The brunette laughed. “Really? While you charmed all the boys and had every weekend another boy in your bed?”  
“No comment.”  
“Hopefully your appetite for new partners every weekend is over.”  
“How did it feel the last two years? How often have you find me with somebody else in my bed?”  
“In your bed never, you in somebody else’s bed once.”  
“Huh?” Sofia looked puzzled at her lover. Did she miss something?  
“Two years ago we weren’t a couple and you had a bad decision dance night with a cheap woman.”  
“Yuck!” There was no need to mention her ex. Okay, maybe she deserved it after pretending to be a tough and heart break-ing woman. “Okay, so slightly over two years…how did you manage to resist me for so long? I had you in my bed, I hold you, I did everything for you and you kept me hanging on for so long.”  
“You were too arrogant.”  
“Self assured.”  
“And a woman, I used to date men.”  
“Do you regret it?”  
“No.”  
“Do you miss a man in your bed?”  
“No.”  
“Anything else you miss?”  
“A long holiday with you. Your parents should give another vacation on an island. That was such a great time.”  
“Yes.” Sofia smiled. They really needed the time off and when they arrived in their hotel, the only thing they did for two days was sleeping, laying on the beach and some short swims to cool off. First it had been difficult for Sofia to wear nothing than her bikini on the beach, at the end of their trip she even went into the water without her prosthesis.   
Anyway she was more confident about her physical condition. There were only a few times when she found herself sad and desperate because she lost half of her leg. The more she found out she could do most things like before and wasn’t left out by her friends and barely good strange looks, the more she wore shorts and didn’t hide her prosthesis anymore. Only the nightmares about the day she lost her leg worried her.   
“Why don’t we plan some vacations for late spring? Where would you like to go?” In a couple of months they could ask for a week off again. After Christmas, after the Easter rush, it was the best time for them to go away, have most of the beach for themselves and not to pick up with too many people.   
“Acapulco.” Sara had always have a soft spot for the famous Mexican beach town. When she watch pictures of it, saw it on TV, she understood why it was the hotspot for celebrities a few decades ago.   
“Not during spring break, I hope.” For Sofia Mexico meant spring break, drunk teenagers and no time to relax.   
“No, when they’re gone and everything is quiet again. We can watch the guys jump off the cliffs, hold hands, have dinner close to the beach.”  
“Sounds good. Watching the sunset on the beach, very romantic. Yes, we should have a look for a nice hotel and a flight and plan a week or ten days there.” Sofia snuggled into Sara’s arms. Some time for themselves, some treats for them and no alarm clock in the morning, forcing them to leave the arms of the other. “I don’t think I can talk my parents into paying for the trip, but I like the idea.”  
“Your parents paying for the trip was a joke. It wasn’t necessary they paid for the last one and I’m very thankful they did, that they came up with the idea. It was exactly what we needed to get our lives back in the line. And explore happiness.”  
“They sent us to paradise, away from L.A. and the hard weeks. Maybe my mother does know what’s good for me.” She told her so since she was a child. Not that Sofia believed her at this time or later, when she was a teenager.   
“Oh, she does. Never ever argue with her about it.” Sara chuckled.   
“She said, you’re good for me, the best what ever happened to me. This statement is the best proof that she knows what’s good. You are the best thing that ever happened to me.” Sofia kissed Sara softly. Even a blind person had to see they were meant for each other. 

5th of December

“Sanders, stop checking your cell phone, it rings when somebody tries to reach you!” Sofia bopped Greg playfully in his side and blinked at him. They were finishing up a scene and Greg’s attention went from minute to minute more to his cell phone than to the scene. Did Jules call? Was she all right? Had he to rush home and get her into hospital? He didn't want to be late for the birth of his children.  
“Sorry…I’m just…”  
“Nervous like a school girl before her first date with the Quarterback, I can see that. Jules has two more weeks until she’s due. You can relax.”  
“We’re expecting twins, twins do come early sometimes. She can barely move and every day they come earlier would be a relief for her.” He hated seeing his girlfriend suffer. With every day Jules was more and more forced to stay in bed or on the couch. Both looked forward to welcome their children to the world, but Greg didn’t have the pain. He wished he could help Jules somehow, be there for her. Instead of staying with her, making her life easier, he was forced to go to work, leave her alone. What if she needed him? Needed something.   
“She’ll be fine. Her mother checks on her every day, do you believe doctor Bendler would hesitate a second to call an ambulance if she had only the slightest apprehension her daughter or the babies are at risk?”  
“No. Alison calls Jules every two hours, she drives her crazy. Another reason why I’ve to be strong and don’t call her too. She doesn’t need another nervous family member to drive her crazy.”  
“Exactly. Be her hubby and not her telephone stalker.”  
“I’m not her husband – yet.” Greg smiled. By the end of next year or the early beginning of the year after the next they’d get married. When their twins could walk and carry the rings, one each. A married man. He. Greg. It sounded so…unreal.   
“You didn’t want to marry a pregnant woman, now you have to wait.”  
“No, I didn’t want my fiancé to miss out a hell of a hen’s night and good champagne on our wedding because she’s pregnant with our twins. She has a right to celebrate as much as I have. So we’ll find two different weekends for the hen’s night and the bachelor party. You and Sara are invited to both parties.”  
“Aren’t bachelor parties for men only?”  
“You’re also supposed to get very drunk, do stupid things and never tell your wife what exactly you did that night. I prefer a night with my best friends, no matter if men or women, a few drinks and fun I can tell my wife of while we’re in our honeymoon.”  
“And your twins are with me, in their cute little beds, having toys around, sit in the garden, we can play, have barbecues and a little pool...”  
“What does Sara say about this?” He smirked.   
“She’ll be fine.” So far Sara wasn’t that anxious to have the babies around, she was a little bit uncomfortable when she thought of taking care of them, being responsible. Sofia was sure, when she had them a few times in her arms, spent some time with them, she’d be more relaxed. “Your mother-in-law will be the bigger problem. Maybe we can make a deal with her, who takes care of the babies. One week they’ll be with us and the other week…she can see them.”  
“You’ll figure something out with Alison. As far as I know you’ve an appointment with her next week.”  
“She tells you about that? That’s confidential. Bad, bad doctor.”   
“Jules told me and you told her.”  
“Maybe.” She grinned.   
Greg’s cell phone rang. Nervously he pulled it out of his pocket, saw it was a work related number, relaxed and answered the call.   
“William?” When their boss called it meant a new case was waiting for them. A new case, that delayed their quitting time.   
“Greg, how far are you and Sofia?”  
“About to leave.”  
“Good. Leave and go to Hollywood Palms, baby ward.”  
“O-okay.” He swallowed. A case on the baby ward of the hospital where Jules was supposed to go to. And the building where his future mother-in-law worked. This couldn’t be good. If they had a dead baby and the cause of death was something that could happen to his twins too, he didn’t want Jules to go there. No matter if her mother worked at this hospital or not. 

Side by side Sofia and Greg walked into the baby ward. Usually this place was packed with people. Mothers and fathers looking at their baby, siblings who were curious about the new little brother or sister, family members and friends who wanted to have the first look of new part of their family or friend’s life. Now there were half a dozen police officer around, a handful of nurses and doctors and all stood around an open door.   
Greg’s eyes met Sofia’s. They had no idea what was waiting for them, their boss didn’t give them any details, only sent them here. The only thing that calmed Sofia down was the fact, she didn’t see any of her former colleagues. So far no homicide detective was around. It could be something else than a dead baby, something less bad. But they had to prepare themselves for everything.  
After showing their badges they could step into the room. A crying woman to the right, a nervous pacing man next to her, two nurses and a doctor who tried to calm them down and one officer in front of a little bed. There were around another dozen beds in this room, all of them seemed to be empty. No baby laughter, no baby cry.   
The doctor turned to them.   
“I’m CSI Sanders, this is CSI Curtis, what happened?”  
“Doctor Goldblum, thanks for coming here so fast.” Doctor Goldblum was in her early forties, short brown hair and eyes in the same color. She was around five foot five. “Please follow me.” She guided them out of the room into the room next door that door was guided by an officer. Again a room with over a dozen cots and no babies inside. Something felt very strange and Sofia’s stomach reacted to it. They were on a baby ward, where were all the babies? They hadn’t seen one.   
“An hour ago a nurse was called by Mister and Mrs. Whitenmeyer, they came here to see their baby daughter Molly. Molly wasn’t in her bed, they believed she was with a doctor for a routine examination.”   
Only the words ‘They believed she was with a doctor’ made Sofia feel sick. It meant this story didn’t have a happy end. Okay, they were never called to a happy end, but sometimes the ends could be worse than bad.   
“No nurse and no doctor took her to any examination, she was supposed to be in her bed, where her mother left her two hours ago. We checked all beds, we took all babies to their parents, checked all the rooms, sent a message to all doctors and nurses in this hospital if they have seen Molly. Nothing. Ten minutes ago a nurse stepped forward, she had been in her lunch break when we started searching for Molly and she, nurse Heller, said she saw how a doctor took Molly out of her bed and left with her. At this time she thought the doctor was about to bring Molly to an examination and didn’t think anything about it…”  
“But he didn’t?” Greg asked.   
“There are two doctors on this shift on this ward. One is me, one is my colleague, doctor Miller. He and me were both in a complicated operation of a four hours old baby, we never came close to Molly today.”  
“So the doctor wasn’t one from your ward.”  
“We believe, he wasn’t a doctor at all.”  
“He wore a uniform?”  
“Yes. And I sent a nurse to check if all uniforms are there. But I’m afraid whoever took Molly wasn’t a doctor. Not a doctor of this ward, not of this hospital.”  
“Somebody kidnapped her.” Sofia said. And she was sure for the parents a kidnapped child was worse than anything else. They hoped their baby was all right, whoever kidnapped it, took care of it, didn’t harm it. And was willing to give it back to them. Then there are the more likely cases, with a kidnapper who did hurt their baby, had no intentions to give it back to them and planned to do things they didn’t want to think of. At the end they would see the dead body of their baby or – what was even worse – never see it again. Left them for the rest of their life in a nimbus.   
“Yes.”  
“Was anybody in the room? Have you informed the police we are dealing with a kidnapping? Do they have a photo of the baby? A description?” She felt how she switched from CSI back into detective. A few weeks a CSI, she hadn’t forgotten what she learnt and deep inside her heart she’d always be a cop. Think like a cop, act like a cop.   
“The nurses got the other babies to their mothers, that’s it. We called security, they informed you, the police and an officer was placed in front of the door to make sure nobody touches anything before you arrive.”  
“Were parents in here too?”  
“No, only nurses and doctors have access to the room. You need a keycard to enter it. It’s for security …apparently not enough.” Doctor Goldblum sighed. Somebody had managed to get a faked keycard and entered the room.   
“We need to talk to the nurse, she has to describe the man.”  
Greg cleared his throat. “We leave that to the police and start processing. I’m sorry doctor, we need prints of all people who have access to this room. That includes the cleaning crew. And of the parents. We need the DNA of Molly, access to the video surveillance.”  
“Everybody will cooperate with you. Anything I can do first?”  
“Why don’t you introduce me to the parents while Miss Curtis starts here.”  
“Of course.”  
“Go ahead, I’m with you in a second.” He waited until the doctor was out of the room.   
“I know I acted like a cop and not like a CSI; if you want to reproach me for that.” Sofia looked guilty. It was hard to control your nature, but she didn't want to use it as an excuse.   
“I’ve no reason and I’m in no position to reproach you, we’re colleagues, it’s the job of the boss to reproach somebody. Is it okay with you when you start here and I talk to the parents?”  
“Yes. Otherwise the cop might take over again. Are you all right? As a father soon to be on a case of baby kidnapping.” In the same place where his babies were supposed to stay in two weeks.   
“Yes. You?”  
“Yeah. Will you call back-up?”  
“First of all I let the police send out an AMBER and then I’m sure the swing shift will come in and work with us. This is a huge building, we need to find out which way he took and process it…after hundreds of people have contaminated the scene.”  
“Another reason why I was happy when I was a cop again. I didn’t have to worry about the evidence and scenes.”  
“You had to tell parents their child was dead or something similar horrible. I prefer the evidence.” He squeezed her hand for a second to give both some confidence and power before he left the room. Time to process the scene, time to get baby Molly back to her parents. 

“Got something?” Detective Frame joined Sofia. He was in his early thirties, tall, chocolate colored skin and soft dark brown eyes. Sofia knew him, she had worked with him when she was a lieutenant. A solid man, barely missed any details .  
“Fingerprints which isn’t a surprise. Did the faked doctor wore gloves?”  
“I’ll find it out for you.”  
“Did you put out an AMBER alert?” The Amber alert was a child abduction emergency alert that was displayed as messages on electronic fields signs on the high- and freeway. Named was it after a little girl named Amber, who got kidnapped and murdered in 1996 in Texas.   
“Yes, it’s on the electric fields and we sent a SMS with the description of the child, a photo and the best we could do about the kidnapper description, lieutenant. We also have a photos sent to all TV stations and they sent it five minutes ago. A special team waits for responds of the public.”  
“It’s CSI Curtis.” Sofia smiled a bit.   
“You earned your rank as a lieutenant and you didn’t lose it by dishonor your badge, you changed due to an injury you got at work, risking your life for other people. In my opinion you’ve all rights to be treated with the respect for the rank you deserved.”  
“Thanks.” She bit on her bits. It was good to hear people still thought she was worth her badge and treated her with the respected she worked for. And it made her almost cry a tear. Nothing a lieutenant is supposed to do.   
“You will do a great job as a CSI I’m sure of that and I’m glad to see you back on a crime scene.”  
“Lets hope we can have our first case together and finish it with a happy end. What did you find out? You talked to the doctors and nurses?”  
“Yes, we have the description, have this man on the radio. A dozen officers are in and around the building, asking patients, employees and worker of nearby shops and restaurants. It’s not possible to vanish with a baby on your arm out of a hospital.”  
“If Molly started crying she drew more attention to them.”  
“Yes. We have officers checking on every room in the building for clues.”  
“Give me a call when you find something and I’ll get it to the evidence.”  
“Of course.”  
“Better keep going what I’m doing here.”  
“If anything comes up, I’ll let you know, lieutenant.”  
“Thanks detective.”  
Sofia hoped they’d find something soon. Two hours were already over, when you haven’t found an abducted child within the first three hours your chances of getting the child back safely to their parents was small. Seventy five percent of all children who are abducted by strangers are killed within these three hours. It was important to work fast and get the results of everything ASAP.

Sofia lifted at least three dozen different prints, bagged the bedding of the cot and the cot itself. She took photos and checked on different ways to get into the room. The baby ward was on the third story, the only way to get in was through the door. Nevertheless she checked the windows, nothing. You couldn’t even open them from the inside. The next thing she did was controlling the lock at the door. A key card system.   
“Who has keys to this room?” She asked a nurse who was around.   
“Everybody who works on this ward.”  
“Other doctors and nurses can’t access it?”  
“No. It’s a special security system for this ward. If a doctor from another ward wants to get in, he or she has to contact one of us.”  
“When another doctor takes a baby for an examination, isn’t he usually accompanied by a nurse?”  
“Most times they send a nurse and don’t come themselves.”  
“So it’s unusual a doctor gets the baby.”  
“Not unusual like suspicious, just it doesn’t happen so often. They have us to do these little things.”  
“Okay.” Sofia wondered first why nobody asked the doctor why he took the baby, where he was about to take it, but probably when it wasn’t this unusual they came here themselves, plus you’re busy yourself and are happy when you don’t have to worry about another doctor and can continue your work, you don’t ask. You assume everything is fine. After all, nobody can get into a room without the key card of this ward.   
“I noticed your leg, did you have the operation here?”  
“Yes.” Sofia felt slightly uncomfortable when people asked about her prosthesis while she was working. Especially when they noticed because of the way the blonde moved. Then again, she was in a hospital, talked to a nurse, it was her job to see things like this.   
“Then you noticed these wards have no key card system. Unfortunately it’s not rare that people try to kidnap babies from wards…but apparently the key card system isn’t as save as we thought.”  
“These people know how to bust a lock. No matter if it’s a lock here, in a top end casino or a villa. As soon as somebody invents a new security system a dozen other people work on programs to get around it.” The FBI, CIA or the Department of Defense surely had very good security systems, nevertheless people managed a few times to get into these systems, get information out or make their web page crash.   
“Do you have anything that gets Molly back?”  
“I can’t talk with you about the evidence as this is an ongoing investigation, Mrs.…?”  
“Solera.”  
“Have you been around when the man took Molly?”  
“Yes, I was here but I didn’t see him. We had a newborn and I did the first examination and got it back to its mothers.”  
“When you see a doctor taking a baby out of the room, do you ask the doctor why?”  
“I…I…I don’t think so. If I clearly not know the doctor yes, but if I know him or her or they act like it’s routine…some doctors can get very…impatient when you question their actions. Or steal their time.”  
“My doctor was doctor Bendler, I know what you mean.” Sofia sent nurse Solera a sympatric smile. As much as she liked Jules’s mother and was grateful for what she did for Sofia, she was sure, her personal doctor could be hard to work with sometimes. And you better don’t come into her way.   
“She has a reputation.”  
“They all have one, haven’t they? Do you have many doctors from other hospitals in here? Change of staff?”  
“No.”  
“Where do you get the key cards from?”  
“You get them when you start your job here, after the shift you’re supposed to give the cards back. We have a box where everybody puts their keycard in.”  
“I’d like to see that.” Back to the evidence, back to being a CSI before she drifted into the lieutenant move. Again. With her kit she followed nurse Solera to the break room. Nobody was inside, probably all nurses were out, talking to patients, telling them everything would be all right soon. Next to the door was a box on the wall. The names of everybody who worked here was written on it, under it was card slot.   
“You press the green button and your personal staff number and pin number and your key card comes out of the slot. When you’re done you simply push your card back into the slot and the little red light next to the slot switches on.”  
“What if you forget it?”  
“When you try to walk out of the ward with your key card in your pocket the alarm system gets off.”  
“Nobody can leave the ward during the shift?”  
“Yes, you can leave your card somewhere here or you enter a personal pin to stop the alarm. But you can’t take the card with you accidentally.”  
It was strange to have such a security system in a hospital, it reminded Sofia more of a bank or museum but it was good to know somebody cared enough about the security of the new born babies to invest so much time, effort and money. And as they were taught today, it wasn’t enough.   
“If you know the staff number and pin of a colleagues, can you get his or her key card?”  
“Yes.”  
“Anybody said he or she’s missing the key card?”  
“Not that I heard of.”  
“What about the last days? The last week?”  
“Not that I know about it.”  
“Maybe…I’ll take prints of the box in case somebody stole a card of somebody who’s on vacation.” Evidence. It wasn’t her job to walk around and ask question. She had to collect the evidence and later she could walk around with a detective or officer. Why was it so difficult to…be what she wasn’t? She was a cop by heart, still was, and it would take some time before her subconscious accepted she was a CSI and not a lieutenant anymore. 

“Lieutenant…CSI Curtis?” Detective Frame stepped behind Sofia. She had finished the room, sent all her evidence to the lab and worked on the hallway. Greg was with the nurses, talked to them, took finger prints, talked to the parents, doctors and other people from the hospital. As the leading CSI he let Sofia working the scene.   
“Yes detective?”   
“We found something you might want to have a look at.”   
“What is it?”  
“A doctor’s overall in a storeroom.”  
“If that’s the overall of the man who took Molly away we know why nobody saw a doctor with a baby. And we have some traces. Maybe even DNA.”   
“We’ll have a look.” She followed Frame to the elevator, he pressed the button for the basement. The kidnapper took the baby down here? When the elevator door opened Sofia found herself in a bight lightened basement and half a dozen police officer.   
“What are they all doing here?”  
“They looked for evidence.”  
“Detective, they contaminate the scene, I need them to leave.”  
“Okay.”  
“Where is the overall?”  
“Here. You can step back, officer and leave. Same for all the others except Medinsky.”  
Sofia opened the iron door to the storeroom. On a trolley were around a dozen laundry bags, most of them opened. In front of one was the doctor’s overall.   
“Why do you think it’s the overall the kidnapper wore?” She took a few photos of the overall, the bags and the whole room.   
“In all other bags are sheets, we talked to facility manager and he said, these bags are all for sheets. The doctor’s overall have different bags.”  
“It was in a bag?”  
“Yes.”  
“Did your officer wear gloves?”  
“Of course. They all wear gloves so they won’t destroy any evidence. They opened all bags and when he found the doctor’s overall he informed me about it and I called you.”  
“Thanks.” Sofia bagged the overall. “Can one of your officers get this one back to the lab? If the kidnapper wore it we might find a hair, get his DNA and find out who he is. I need to check the doorknob for prints.”  
“No problem, I send somebody ASAP.”  
“Is there surveillance down here?” She hadn’t seen any cameras but this didn’t mean, they weren’t there.   
“No, unfortunately not.”  
“Any idea where he went after he left his overall here?”  
“There’s an emergency door to the car park but when you open it there’s an alarm. And a stairway up to a side path of the hospital. You can only open the door to there from the inside, they use it to get the laundry out.”  
“Means the kidnapper could have used it as well. He steps into the elevator as a doctor with a baby on his arms, if somebody asks what he’s doing, he takes little Molly to an examination. Get off the empty elevator here, he can’t have people with him in here because they’d be suspicious. Changes or takes off his overall and leaves with Molly like a father with his new born daughter.” It was one possibility how it had happened. One of many.   
“When he knew about the door he knows the hospital.”  
“Yes. Can you check if there are any angry former employees? Nothing damages a hospital more than a kidnapped baby. People are very sensitive when it comes to babies.”  
“We check it. Do you want to work down here alone or shall I give you one or two officers to continue?”  
“I take the way from here to the door, no, to both doors. He is clever enough to get a keycard for the ward, he won’t have any problems with the alarm on the door. Whoever our kidnapper is, he know the hospital and a few things about electronic and security. Maybe a former security member.”  
“We check on that. Good thinking, lieutenant.”  
“Thanks.” When her colleagues heard she was called lieutenant they’d give her a strange look and think she believed she was better than they were. The truth was, whenever detective Frame called her lieutenant it gave her extra power. 

After getting various prints from the door handle to the storeroom, the door to the car park and the one out to the path she started at the elevator again. Think like a kidnapper. You got the baby, you left the ward, made it into the elevator, rode it down without company, now you’re here with the baby. Babies cry, they feel when something is wrong. You can’t let the baby cry, need it quiet so you don’t get too much attention from bystanders and patients outside. First you get rid off your overall, hide it in the laundry bags so it can’t be found easily. First mistake, the police found it.   
What next? To change you have to put Molly down. Whenever you sit down you pick up traces from the place you are. Same for all the things you put down, they leave traces. Meant, Molly must have left something behind. Did he put her on the floor? Not likely, too cold, too hard, might make the baby cry. On one of the laundry bags? Possible. Soft like a bed, the best chance to make her continue to sleep or be quiet. She had to get all the bags into the lab and let them check.   
Possibility three: The kidnapper wasn’t alone, somebody waited for him down here, took Molly while he hid the overall. Together you leave the basement, walk out and are gone. All in less than five minutes. They had to check on two people and a baby on surveillance from the outside and closer shops. Two men and a baby…no, not two men! Two men might make people look at them. A man and a woman. A happy family with their newest member. His accomplice had to be a woman or be dressed like a woman.   
“Greg?”  
“You got something?”  
“A theory and a doctor’s overall in the wrong laundry bag.” She filled him in. “We need the videos of surrounding shops, look for a couple with a baby on their arm.”  
“I let the guys know. Most new parents won’t leave by foot, we might get a photo this way. I get the tape from the car park, car parks are always under surveillance and have a look if a couple with a baby gets into a car. Then I get one of the nurses to watch it with me she can tell me if she recognize Molly or a couple she hadn’t seen before.”  
“I continue down here. He left the overall, maybe he left more.”  
“Okay. Good luck.”  
“Ditto.” They needed luck – like Molly. The baby needed a lot of luck to be back with her parents soon.   
Her eyes fell on a garbage can. Maybe he threw something away. If you don’t have the cops and CSI looking in every corner nobody cared about what was in a garbage can. Get rid off whatever you didn’t want with you anymore, the next day somebody emptied the can and whatever you left behind was gone.   
Carefully she opened the lit. Used tissues, coffee-to-go cups, candy bar wrappings. Piece by piece she took everything out, placed it in one of two evidence bags. The left one was for unlikely evidence, like a coffee cup because a doctor on his way to an examination with a baby on his arm didn’t have a coffee cup with him. The right bag was for likely evidence. Tissue, a cigarette butt. When she was about to throw an tissue in the left bag she stopped. It was quite on top of everything, so one of the last things that was thrown away. It could be important. And it smelled…sweet…She opened the tissue, ready to prove herself wrong and found snot in it but there was nothing. Only this slightly sweet smell.   
Colorless, sweet smell…this was evidence! Absolutely. She got her cell phone out.   
“Greg, I found a tissue in a garbage can and it smells sweet. No snot, only a sweet smell and it is slightly wet.”  
“Chloroform?”  
“My bet.”  
“He used it as an anesthetic. A sleeping baby doesn’t cry, makes it easier to vanish without anybody noticing him or the baby. Get it into the lab and have it test.”  
“I will. Greg?”  
“I know. When he used too much it was fatal for Molly. Lets hope he knew what he did.”  
Sofia swallowed. It was easy to overdose a baby on chloroform. But so far the kidnapper seemed to be very well prepared so she hoped he didn’t overdose Molly. Or maybe an overdose was the smaller burden the baby had to carry. 

“Did you hear anything of Molly?” Sofia’s attention was gone with the wind when Greg came into the room. She was back out of the basement, finished with the hallway from the ward to the elevator. He had worked with the parents and talked to the police. Something she felt should be her job. Okay, she hadn’t worked as a CSI for a while, was still a trainee and had to learn about the newest techniques. But talking to the police was something she knew how to do.   
“No.” He sat down. Sorrow and sadness were written all over his face. His thoughts were clearly with Jules and their unborn babies. Who said this couldn’t happen to them? They weren’t safe here. Apparently no baby was safe.   
“What did you find out?” She went to the vending machine and got him a coffee.   
“Thanks.” It was after ten in the evening. Since fourteen hours they were on the job, six hours in the hospital. Both were tired. “We have a description of the man. Six feet, dark brown hair, slim and in his thirties. Nobody saw him closer so we have no eye color. He didn’t talk to anybody and nobody saw where he took Molly to.”  
“I compared the prints I got from the room and the key card box, they all match the staff. Same for the room. He must have worn gloves.”  
“The security camera got him, the problem is, he must have known where the cameras are, it never caught his face.”  
“The car park?”  
“Nothing. No man with a baby, no couple with a baby.”  
“What about the key card?”  
“I checked the security system, when he entered the room the system saved a number that belongs to nobody. It is for a new team member, they have a couple of cards here they give to new employees.”  
“And the alarm didn’t do off?”  
“No. The alarm goes off when you open the door without or with a wrong card, not when you use a wrong number. They’re about to change that now. They checked if one of their cards is missing, they’re all here. Whoever made the card knew about the number code or got incredibly lucky, like lotto lucky.”  
“Highly unlikely. Could it be somebody hacked the computer and got the number there?”  
“That’s my guess at the moment, seems to be the easiest way. I haven’t checked on their computer system, Chrissy is here to do so.”  
“Did anybody see him and Molly after they left the baby ward?” Sofia knew when you left this ward you had to take the elevator down or the staircase. In both places you are not alone during the day. A doctor with a baby on his arms must have drawn some attention. People always stop and look at babies.   
“So far we haven’t got any witnesses. Nobody saw a man leaving the building with a baby on his arms. A lot of people saw happy couples with their babies so he must have had a woman waiting for him to blend in perfectly.”  
“Damn. Molly is gone since six hours, you know what that means. We’re fighting against the time and the kidnapper and lose against both of it.” In her eyes it was about time to have some success. They wasted six hours, six long hours for the kidnapper to take the baby wherever and six endless hours for the parents waiting to get their daughter back, hear anything of her.   
“She had been on the news every half an hour, so far the police didn’t get anything from the public.”  
“Can’t be. Somebody must have seen them! They’re not invisible. People always stare at babies, even when they don't like babies.”  
“Some people can blend in so perfectly that they are like invisible.”  
“With a baby?” Sofia didn’t want to believe nobody didn’t see Molly. People looked at babies. No matter if they were awake or asleep.   
“You found chloroform, they can had her on their arms and nobody noticed her. Put her into a buggy and nobody sees or hears her.”  
“Swing is still at the scene?”  
“Yeah. We should go home.”  
“We have evidence to work with.”  
“Yes and we’ll work on it tomorrow morning while swing and night shift works on it now …believe me, I’d like to go on and process, our boss says otherwise. We’re tired and are at risk to overlook something important.”  
“I know the arguments, used them myself when I was an acting supervisor.”  
“Long time…the lieutenant time isn’t that long ago.”  
“No…I know I acted once or twice more like a cop than a CSI…”  
“Don’t make it sound like you’ve got a reason to apologize.” Greg interrupted her. “I think it’s good you know both ways of working.”  
“I’ve to get used to be a CSI again.”  
“You still miss being a lieutenant.”  
Sofia nodded. Why deny something he could see. More than once she found herself in the morning on the road to the police department instead of the road to the crime lab. When she thought of herself, she saw a cop, who knew some lab stuff. How was she supposed to give one hundred percent when her heart was still with her former job?  
“Are you sure you want to be a CSI?”  
“I’ll do anything I can to get Molly back to her parents, Greg.”  
“I didn’t doubt if you’re capable of doing a great job, Sofia. I asked you want to be a CSI. Does it make you happy?”  
“It’s a way to bring people justice.”  
He shook his head. “You don’t answer my question. Doesn’t matter, you don’t have to. Come on, time to go home. Sara misses you and I’ve to check on my fiancé.”  
“How often did you think it could have been one of your twins?” For him, for a man who would be a father within the next two weeks, the case had to be hard. Especially because Jules was supposed to give birth to the twins in the Hollywood Palms, stay here on the baby ward. How could he feel his children were safe when he worked this case?   
“I try not to think about it. When we get him ASAP everything will be fine and we don’t have to worry about the twins.”  
“We will get him.” She took his hand. They had to. Together they would get all the evidence the police needed to find Molly, get her back to her parents and put the kidnapper in jail. She wished him a lot of fathers as cell mates. 

Instead of words as a greeting Sara pulled Sofia in her arms and kissed her. No time to change clothes, no time to refresh herself, as soon as she entered the bedroom, she was pulled in by her lover and kissed long and comforting. Finally the strain fell of and for a moment there were only Sara and Sofia in the universe. No cases, no kidnapper, no problems. Only their lips and tongues, their hands holding on to each other and softly caressing the cold skin of the other one.   
“Give me a minute and I’m with you.” Sofia knew before she came into the room Sara was awake. She had sent her a text hours ago that they caught a case and had to work overtime. By now she was sure Sara knew all about the case from the news, Jules and mostly from Don. He hadn’t been there, it wasn’t a homicide case – not yet and hopefully not at all – but he had his sources.   
“Okay. Did you eat?”  
“I’m not hungry.”  
“Honey.”  
“We both need some sleep. I’m with you in a sec.” Sofia kissed her lover and vanished into the bathroom.   
Sara sighed and went into the little kitchen. From the fridge she took the rest of her pizza heated it in the microwave. These five minutes less of sleep wouldn’t kill them. It was important that her girlfriend ate at least a little bit to give her body the fuel it needed. She knew from her own experience it was difficult to get a good night sleep when you were hungry.   
When Sofia sent her a text she’d be back home later because of a case, Sara wasn’t worried. Overtime happened all the time, she knew about it better than most people. When she watched the news and heard about baby Molly she knew instantly it was Sofia’s case. Under different circumstances the blonde had told her in a sentences what her case was about, this time she only wrote a few words, no explanation. Meant, Sofia was troubled, it was a case that got into her. Her lover was sensitive to cases about children. Ever since they caught the case about the boy who starved to death because the woman his mother put in charge of his life, didn’t care about him, if he got something to eat or not, they both knew these cases were a weak spot in both of their lives.   
“It wasn’t necessary to get me some pizza.” With wet hair Sofia stood only two yards away, watched Sara staring at the microwave. The pizza was hot, the utensil stopped running a minute or two ago.   
“Depends on how you define necessary.” Sara opened the microwave and put the plate with the pizza in front of Sofia. “I see it as necessary that my girlfriend eats.”  
“Did you eat?”  
“With Don, had the other half while he had pasta. Tony and Sally brought it from work for a little celebration. They both got a job in a soap opera, nothing big but a step towards fame.”  
“That’s great, it had been a while they got parts in something. Hopefully there’s a director watching and books them for a recurring role or a movie.” At least some good news today. A small part in a soap opera wasn’t a break through but after a few weeks of no work in the show business it was better than nothing.   
“They plan a house celebration for the weekend, a small party, we’re invited.”  
“Thanks.” Right now she didn’t feel like a celebration. “How are your work hours on the weekend?”  
“Early tomorrow, I got the afternoons and evenings from Friday on. A possibility for a free Monday and Tuesday. But at the moment two of my colleagues are sick, the plan can change again. What about you? A day off after the case?”  
“Maybe.” They both had worked the last four days and were due for a day or two days off within the next week. In Sara’s case it was likely she gets those days, for Sofia it depended on her currant case. The closer they got to Christmas the more unlikely it was they would have days off. Both had signed in to work the holidays. If Sofia didn’t close the case fast, couldn’t get Molly back to her parents within the next day or two, it meant the chances to get the baby back at were small and Sofia’s chances for a day off didn’t exist. Not that she worried about that at the moment.   
“You will find her.”  
“No, the police will.”  
“How often did we both solve a case? Found a missing person? The police gets the clues from the CSI and together they go out and find the victims and arrest the perpetrator.”  
“I know…Sara…I…” Sofia sighed.   
“You feel helpless and don’t know if it was the right decision to become a CSI.”  
Sofia pushed the plate away and pulled her lover into her arms. Of course Sara understood. Of course she didn’t need to hear the words to know what was wrong, what the blonde felt. They knew each other better than anybody else did.   
“Why do I doubt my decision? It was the most sensible thing to do.”  
“Sensible doesn’t make it feel right for you.”  
“I’ve always been a sensible person…tried to be one when it came to my job. What’s wrong with me, Sara?”  
“Nothing.” The brunette kissed the single tear away that made its way down the blonde’s face. Her bright deep blue eyes changed into darker blue, covered in sorrow and desperation. Again. Like when she lost the lower part of her left leg. Again Sara felt helpless and it broke her heart.   
“I should be glad I can be a CSI.”  
“You wanted to be a cop. It was your plan to become a captain, make the first tests for next rank. A lieutenant two. Not a CSI level three. A rookie somehow because you’ve been out of the job for so many years.”  
“I can work law enforcement, I can work with Greg, I should be grateful.”  
“It could be worse, yes. And it could be the way you wished your life to be.”  
“Beside of the job and my leg it’s exactly I wanted it to be. I’ve got you, it can’t get better. A great house, lovely friends and two funny dogs. More reasons to be happy than to be sad. Nevertheless sometimes this sadness overcomes me.”  
“What does your therapist say about it?”  
“Absolutely normal. Same what a friend of us says when she shrinks me.”  
“Believe her, she’s good.” Sara smiled. “Come on, time to brush your teeth and go to bed. We both have to get up early and I want a few hours with you in my arms.”  
“These are the best words I’ve heard today.”  
“I can do better.” Sara smiled.  
“How?”  
“I love you.”   
Sofia pulled Sara in her arms and kissed her softly. This was better, much better. These were the best words ever invented. Nothing could top these three words said by Sara.   
“Love you too. Thanks for being so patient and not giving up on me. Sometimes I believe I’m a hopeless case.”  
“You’re not. You’re my girlfriend, you’re the woman I love, you’re the person I want to spend my life with. Not a hopeless case.”  
“I’m the luckiest person in the world to have you by my side.”  
“No that’s me because I’ve got you.” Sara kissed her lover softly. “Come on, time to go to bed. We both brush our teeth and get into each other’s arms. The world won’t get better when we’re together but we’ll feel better.”

6th of December

“Another partner would ask you why you’re awake at this time of the…early morning.” Sara leant on the door frame to the kitchen in the first story and watched Sofia making coffee. It was half past four, way too early for Sofia to be awake. “And why you weren’t in bed when I woke up fifteen minutes ago.”  
“Sorry, I couldn’t sleep.” She turned the pancake. “Want some too?”  
“Do you serve them only with chocolate spread or maple syrup or is it possible to get one served with a kiss?”  
“I can ask the chef if there are some available.” The blonde switched off the oven, went to Sara, snuggled into her arms and kissed her. “Sorry for being complicated.”  
“Women are entitled to be complicated.”  
“You deserve better.”  
“I deserve the best, that’s why I’ve got you. You start early today.”  
“Yes. I figured if I can’t sleep I can go to the lab and work on the evidence.” She checked her cell phone, there were no news about Molly, meant, the baby was still missing. With every hours they lost their chances got lower.   
“Sounds familiar. Wanna tell me more about the case?”  
“You stopped being a CSI for a reason.”  
“And I started dating you for a few reasons. Love, personality, character and your husky voice telling me the things that are on your mind, so we can discuss what’s bothering you. We both know I didn’t stop working as a CSI because I don’t like the job anymore, I stopped because it was too much. The fact we both read forensic and science magazines shows, we both are interested in a field that’s called CSI.” Sara figured when Sofia talked about the case, told her details, it could relax her, make her feel better.   
Sofia sighed. “We have nothing on the man, only a description, but no prints, no DNA. He knew where the surveillance cameras were, we didn't get a shot of his face, only the back of his head. There are so many questions and barely any answers. We assume he has an accomplice but there’s no evidence for it, we’re sure he used chloroform to make Molly sleep so he can walk away with her quietly. We don’t know if he knows how much chloroform is enough for a baby, it’s a risk…you know it.”  
“Yes. If he’s that prepared, the way you described him, he knows how much he can use. You will find all the answers you need. And you’ll find Molly.”  
“I hope so.”   
“What else is on your mind, Sofia?” Sara felt there was something else. Something, that had nothing to do with the case. Or was not close related to it.   
“You know I annoyed you about the baby thing…”  
“You never annoyed me about the baby thing.” Corrected Sara patiently.   
“Okay, I told you I thought about having a baby one day, we settled on talking about it later, when I can walk around the reservoir, you aren’t that…excited about having a baby in the house as I am. Since yesterday I think a baby isn’t a good idea. Too many things to worry about. We worry about ourselves a lot, when we have somebody else to worry about, it might be too much.”  
“Why don’t we think about the baby when you don’t have a case with a kidnapped baby and we had a few nights with the twins? After Greg and Jules have been away for a short trip and we take care of the twins, we know how it is to have a baby and care for it. We can’t judge about things we haven’t experienced yet, can we?”  
“You think we might enjoy it?”  
“We’ll see. Do you want twins or just one?”  
“One is enough. Jules doesn’t look too happy about her… physical condition and you can see through all the joy and happiness she’s in a lot of pain. My body has been through a lot the last months, I don’t want to risk any problems.”  
“Neither do I. Lets wait until she has her babies and we babysit them. Wanna talk more about the case?”  
“Breakfast?”   
“Honey…”  
“We can talk about the case tonight, now we need our breakfast and go to work. Will you be back for dinner?” A stupid question, when Sara started at six, she was back after lunch. The question was, was Sofia back for dinner?   
“Yes. I’ll make a beeline to see Jules because my shifts ends around two. Greg will be very busy and most of her friends have to work or their own family so she might get a little bit lonely on the couch.”  
“She couldn’t walk much when we were over two days ago. She tried but you saw it was difficult and painful. Greg said, if it goes on like this she might have to stay the last week before labor in hospital.”  
“This bad?”  
“Yeah. So yes, have a look how she is, spend some time with her. I send you a text when I clock-off. If you’re still with her and it’s not too late I come around too.”  
“Will you try not to work a double again?”  
“I try to. Hopefully we find Molly today, otherwise we’ll stay until we get the evidence we need to find this man. The poor parents, it must drive them crazy. I feel so sorry for them and guilty because I haven’t found anything yet to get Molly back.”  
“You try everything you can, if there isn’t any evidence you can’t do anything. There’s nothing like a perfect crime, people always leave traces behind, but not always do these traces help us find the perpetrator.”  
“We have the doctor’s overall, there wasn’t a hair on it, they look for a little bit of skin, hope they can work with it. Our lab rats moved the case up, everybody is doing their best, all three shifts work together and still…it’s been sixteen hours.” Sofia pushed her plate away, the pancake was only half eaten.   
“Finish your breakfast. Please. For me.”  
“I’m not hungry.”  
“Nevertheless does your body need the food to keep you going and you won’t have time to eat when you’re working. I’ve been there, know how you feel, know you can’t enjoy your breakfast but sometimes you have to eat without enjoying it. When you don’t eat your blood sugar level goes down and you can’t concentrate. Molly deserves a CSI high on concentration, everything else doesn’t help her.” Sara pushed the plate back to Sofia.   
The blonde faintly sighed and took another bite of her pancake. “You know, detective Frame called me lieutenant yesterday. He said, I earned my rank, I worked hard for it and it’s not like I’m not a lieutenant anymore because I dishonored my badge. It’s because I got injured in the line of fire and I deserve all the respect and rank for it. He almost made me cry when he said this.”  
“Do you think you can be happy as a CSI one day?” Sara’s hand found the hand of her lover.   
“Hopefully. I need a few more weeks, a few successes. Need to see what I do as a CSI helps people as much as my work as a lieutenant. I know in my head it does, but my heart is still a lieutenant and it will take a while before I feel comfortable with my new life. Like I still need time to accept my prosthesis. Get used to the fact people ask questions about it.”  
“Did this happen yesterday?”  
“Yes. One of the nurses asked me if the amputation was done in her hospital. I was confused about her question, then again, she’s a health care professional, she sees when people don’t move the natural way and gets curious about where the operation was done. I’d do the same with police business. Still, it feels strange, not comfortable.”  
“Anything I can do for you?”  
“You do everything you can and without you I don’t think I could continue, probably I’d suffer from severe depression when it wasn’t for you.”  
“Same here. We’re each other’s best medicine.”  
“You’re the only medicine I like to take every day and can’t overdose because there can never be too much of you.” Sofia bent over and kissed Sara softly. What would she do without her lover? She was there for her, understood her, loved her and picked her up when she was down.   
“Give me a call when you need me, need to talk or just want to hear my voice, will you?”   
“I might call for your expertise.”   
“You can call me for everything.” Usually the didn’t call each other while they were at work, today seemed to be a good day to make an exception. To give both some more comfort. 

“Please tell me the case is closed, Molly is back with her parents, we have the man in custody and everything is over.” Sofia greeted Greg when she came into the lab. The look her friend gave her told her all her wishes wouldn’t become true.   
“No, sorry.”  
“Your voice sounds like there’s more and this more isn’t good. What is it?”  
“William got a call from CSI Downtown team. They found the body of a dead child, between four and five so it’s not Molly. The child wasn’t reported missing.”  
“Do you think there’s a connection between our case and their case?”  
“We’re not sure. TOD was yesterday morning, only a couple hours before he took Molly.”  
“He tried to abduct a child, it didn’t work out and he tries a baby after it? No, doesn’t work for me. He was too well organized, this man planed the abduction, he knew the hospital, he knew the security system, the cameras. When he abducted the other child why did nobody called it in? Nobody reported the child missing, you don’t go on a short vacation with your five year old child at home. To me their case sounds more like a family member is responsible for the death of the child.” This didn’t sound like their case. And she didn’t want to compare their case to a dead child case. Molly had to be alive.   
“Not our case but I’m with you. We got no DNA from the doctor’s overall, the tiny particle of skin Ronald found, was useless. Your nose was right, it was chloroform on the tissue. Not much so Molly should be fine.”  
“Did you talk to her parents?”  
“No, not since yesterday. Night is still there, we should…”  
“Sanders, Curtis, new case!” Their boss William stepped out of his office. He was in his late fifties, tall and looked like an old football player.   
“We’re still working on Molly’s case.”  
“No, you don’t. We have another missing baby, Hollywood Hills. Here the address, the police is there.”  
“Another missing baby?” Sofia didn’t believe in coincidence. Los Angeles was a huge city, every day people got missing, were killed, but two missing babies within two days? Within twenty-four hours? Not likeable.   
With their kits they jogged to the car and drove up to the Hollywood Hills. A nice drive, Sofia would enjoy under different circumstances.   
“Do you believe the cases are connected?” Greg asked.   
“I don’t know. Molly was two days old, was in hospital on a baby ward. This baby was at home, the home is in Hollywood Hills, the hospital is in Hollywood. Not a distance for somebody with a car.”  
“Could be an abduction, could be the parents try to hide something, make it look like it was our man. It was and is all over the media, people know about Molly. We had enough cases when parents called the police, said the baby or child was missing and in the end they killed it themselves. So sick.”  
“Are you sure you should work cases with babies?”  
“Yes. I can’t stop working baby cases only because I’ll be a father soon. Half of our colleagues are fathers or mothers. We have to be professional, can’t pick the cases. Not without a good reason. Jules being pregnant isn’t a reason. And I feel better when I can chase these people, make the city safer for babies, for my babies.”  
“Sara will visit her today, she can finish work early.”  
“That’s good.”  
“How is Jules?”  
“It gets worse every day, which is a bad thing to say when we think, we talk about a pregnancy. This morning it was hard for her to get up, took her a while before she was in the living room. The best thing for her is to lie down, move as less as possible and don’t have girl’s nights anymore. It was too much, she got told off by her mother for it yesterday and I support Alison. My fiancé needs to rest and not to party.”  
“She’s bored.”  
“I understand that but it’s not good for her nor the babies. Alison said if it goes worse she has to get into hospital until labor. They had a fight about it.”  
“Where leaves that you?”  
“In between. I feel like I’ve to support Jules and at the same moment Alison’s words make a lot of sense to me. She worries about her, about her physical condition and so do I. The problem is, Jules doesn’t want us to treat her like she’s made of china. She can be so awful stubborn, even when she suffers.”  
“The pain won’t go only because she’s in hospital.”  
“No but she can stay in bed and somebody is around the whole time if she needs help. On the other hand I worry about the twins since Molly is gone. Who said this won’t happen again? The next time it could one or both of our babies. I’m close to ask for a week off when Jules is in labor and sit next to the twin’s beds the whole time, make sure nobody abducts them. Sounds crazy, isn’t possible…”  
“I understand you, I had the same thoughts.”  
“Shall we play bodyguards for the twins?”  
“I doubt the hospital will agree on it.”  
“Maybe it would be better when Jules gives birth at home…”  
“No, she will have twins, it’s safer with doctors around, in hospital. You say yourself it’s not an easy pregnancy, she needs doctors around.”  
“You’re right.” Greg sighed. So many things to worry about. At home and at work. He was glad when they solved the baby cases and his own babies were at home with them, safe and well. 

The house they got called to was a single family house, nothing fancy, no fence for protection like they had seen at various places on their way to here. Hollywood Hills was a spot for stars and rich people – and people in between, who wanted to look rich or famous. Sofia herself had had a look for a house up here when she came to L.A., the prices and the fact, she was so far away from all action, made her look at another place and then she fell in love with her house in Silver Lake.   
Plain white stones lead them the way to the front door where an officer stood. After showing their badges both walked in and found a crying woman in the arms of a man and a detective in the kitchen. Sofia knew her, her name was Guillyard.   
“CSI Sanders, CSI Curtis, these are the Henderson. Their son Trevor is missing.”   
“Mister and Mrs. Henderson, I’m CSI Sanders. Could you please show us where you saw your son the last time?”  
“In…in the living room.” Mrs. Henderson sobbed. “He was in his buggy, we came back from a walk, I left him there because he slept, it was nice and warm in the sun and I went upstairs for a minute to go to the toilet.” She held her balance on the kitchen counter. Held in brown with a work surface in the middle of the room, a little dining area and two windows the kitchen looked cozy. The burner were covered like you saw it often when toddler lived in a house. If the Henderson’s didn’t have a second child, they prepared their kitchen already for later when the baby walked and tried to get his hands on everything.   
“The living room is on the left?” Sofia asked. They had to keep going, every minute was precious time. While one talked to the parents, the other had to work the scene.   
“Yes.”  
“I’ll have a look.” She left the kitchen and walked into the living room. Spacious, big windows to the garden, a double-seater, two armchairs and a glass table were the center of the living room, all held in beige. A TV and stereo system on one side of the room, opposite to the double-seater, two book shelves to the left and side and an open glass door to the garden to the right. Next to the door an empty buggy. No sign of Trevor.   
Before she went to the buggy she took a few photos of the room, then close-ups of the buggy and the glass door. If somebody kidnapped the baby this was the most possible point of entry. The garden – was far as she could see from here – mostly lawn, a few bushes and palm trees for shade. A table with four chairs and a barbecue for summer evenings outside. No fence. The neighbor house was hidden behind huge trees from the other property. Keep your family life to yourself, don’t let anybody watch you having a barbecue. She remembered on the right and the left side of the house were bushes, high enough to give somebody shelter to hide.   
Back to the living room, to the buggy. She took a few more photos.  
“You must find my baby!” Mrs. Henderson was behind her.   
“We’ll try everything. Was the buggy here when you left it?”  
“Yes. The sunshine touched it, I thought the extra heat might be good for Trevor, he had a little cold the last days.”  
“Was the door open?”  
“No…yes…I opened it a little bit so he gets fresh air…oh my god, do you think somebody came through the open door?”  
“It’s a possibility.”  
“I let the man who did this in? It’s all my fault!” The woman started crying again. Against her impulse to comfort the woman, Sofia stayed a yard away. There were a lot of open questions she needed answers to.   
“No, it’s not. You said you took Trevor out for a walk?”  
“Yes.”  
“To where?”  
“Just around the block, fifteen minutes maybe.”  
“Where exactly?”  
“Down on Woodrow Wilson Drive, the street makes a loop. We walk there every day.”  
“Around the same time?”  
“Yes, after breakfast.”   
“Did you notice somebody? Somebody who isn’t usually around?”  
“No…when I’m out with Trevor he has my full attention.”  
“Did you talk to somebody? A neighbor?”  
“I talked to Mrs. Hutmaker, she’s a widow four doors down the street. When we crossed her house she sat in the garden on a bench, we talked for a few moments about the weather, the upcoming Christmas celebration and…Christmas…I want my baby back. How are we supposed to have Christmas without him?”  
She couldn’t There was no way she and her husband could celebrate without Trevor in their middle. Not this Christmas and not the next Christmas. Sofia wasn’t sure if they ever could celebrate Christmas or any other special days again. “Did somebody follow you? Approached you? A stranger who asked for the way?”  
“No…no, we met somebody with a dog, I don’t know her name but she walks her dog every morning.”  
“Any car that didn’t belong to here?”  
“Sorry, I didn’t pay attention.”  
“Okay. Is something missing from the room?”  
“No…I don’t know, I never checked. Who cares? Trevor is gone, he’s important, nothing else. All the rest is replaceable.”  
“Any jewelry? Art?”  
“We don’t have art, the most expensive things in this room is the TV and it’s there.”  
“Where was your husband?”  
“At work. I called him when I came back and Trevor was gone.”  
“How long was Trevor alone? You said you went upstairs to go to the toilette. Did you come back right after it?”  
“Yes, I had to prepare lunch.”  
“So you went back into the kitchen or in here?”  
“I looked into the living room to have a look if Trevor was still asleep, saw the buggy and was about to go into the kitchen when I thought it might be better to close the door so his cold won’t get worse. I came in here, closed the door, wanted to tuck him in and saw the buggy was empty.”  
“What then?”  
“I called out his name, which is stupid because he can’t answer, he’s only two weeks. Opened the door, ran into the garden, looked around, called his name again, went inside again, searched the house even when I knew he can’t go anywhere, called Billy and waited for him to come.”  
“When did you call the police?”  
“Billy did…I…I was so confused, sat on the floor, his little blanket in my arms and cried.” The scene and the evidence were contaminated and a lot of time was wasted.   
“How long did your husband need to be with you?”  
“Twenty minutes.”  
“You called the police so roughly half an hour after Trevor was gone?”  
“Yes…maybe…I guess so.”  
“We need something from Billy, do you have the cloth you clean his face with after you fed him? A used one. So we can get his DNA. And we need your fingerprints.”  
“Why?”  
“I’ll check for prints now and have to have eliminate yours and your husband’s prints. This way we can get the prints of whoever took Trevor. Just see my colleague, he will help you with his and take the cloth.”  
“I get it.”  
“Thank you.” Sofia waited until the woman left the room. Now she knew a few more things, like why the blanket was thrown careless on the buggy. It wasn’t from the kidnapper, it was Mrs. Henderson. There would be a lot of DNA of the mother on it. 

“You look a little bit tired.” Shane took Sara aside. Both were the guides of a school group today and their students were off for a little break in a hut. The Hispanic was in his late twenties, tall, green eyes like grass in spring time and currently gray-greenish hair. The color of his hair changed like the color of the leaves in the forest.   
“I didn’t sleep much.”  
“Do I have to tell Sofia off? She can’t make you stay up all night, it's not your day off. Or was she in pain and you couldn’t get any sleep because of that?”  
“Neither one of it. She came back home late…you heard about the missing baby?”  
“Yes…it’s her case?”  
“Yes. I knew it was her case before she said it so I stayed up until she came home to talk to her, make sure she is all right. When I got up this morning she was already awake, hadn’t heard anything new and worried a lot.”  
“It’s a terrible case and I guess when you talk to the parents, see their desperation, can’t help them, it’s even worse.”  
“Feeling helpless, feeling like you’re not good enough to help, that you’re in the wrong profession. Being a CSI isn’t what she wanted for her life.”  
“No, she wanted to be a cop.” Shane had met Sofia a few times when the blonde came along to see Sara, meet her after work for a walk in the forest or a little picnic. And on Sara’s birthday he came around to give her a little present.   
“How much do you miss being a CSI?”  
“Not at all. It was a great job, I enjoyed and wouldn’t want to miss it for anything but being a ranger is…it’s science, it’s nature, it’s social, it’s peaceful. I’m happy here and I don’t want to tell people anymore that a friend or family member died, don’t want to find explanation why people had to die. This is great. We can be outside, see animals, walk around with children who are fascinated by nature and want to know everything. They don’t ask why is something bad, they’re much more interested in the good things, the fun.”  
“Good, I don’t want to work without you. I like you Sara.”  
“I like you too. Why would I give up working with you?”  
“To work with Sofia?”  
“No, it’s better when she works as a CSI and I as a ranger. You need some space so you have to tell your partner about your day in the evening. When you’re together 24/7 it’s too much. No space for surprises and stories about your day.”  
“What do you tell her about me?”  
“Nothing. Why would I talk with her about you?” Sara laughed and bopped him.   
“Well, I’m a good looking, charming and nice guy, who you like and work with. Is she jealous I’m so cute and spend a lot of time with you? See the sunrise or sunset, walk through meadows full of blossoms. Like couples in kitschy Hollywood movies do.”  
“No, she isn’t jealous.”  
“Oh.”  
“And she knows you’ve got a girlfriend.”  
“Had.”  
“What do you mean, had?” They had talked about his girlfriend yesterday. She knew he was involved.   
“I had a girlfriend.”  
“We talked about her Christmas gift yesterday. What you can give her and where to get the best gifts.”  
“Yesterday, all my trouble seemed so far away…no…this means I’m single. Or I understood her wrong.” He took his cell phone and handed it over to Sara. On the screen was a text message. U don’t have 2 think about a X-MAS gift. Don’t call me anymore nor come around. It’s over. G. Irritated Sara shook her head and read the message again.   
“Is she serious?”  
“To me she sounds very serious.”   
“Oh Shane, I’m so sorry.” She pulled him in her arms and hugged him. She was aware people ended their relationship nowadays via cell phone, email or Twitter but it was the first time she saw such a message on a cell phone of a friend. What did people think when they wrote such messages? They could never have any real feelings for the other person. Don’t call me and don’t come around. No explanation, only a note it’s over and don’t bother me.   
“Like she said, I save a Christmas gift.”  
“Bloody bitch.”  
“Miss Sidle! There’re children around!”  
“Far away so they won’t hear us. How are you holding up?`”  
“Seven months for nothing. And no Christmas present. Wanna go out for dinner with me? I’ve some spare money now.”  
Sara laughed a bit. “No, thanks I’ve an appointment after work with a very pregnant woman.”  
“Very pregnant woman? It can’t be Sofia or you didn’t tell me the last news about your relationship.”  
“No, not Sofia, Jules. The fiancé of Greg.”  
“Okay. You prefer to talk about babies than have dinner with me. A little bit surprises me this, Sara. I never thought you’re the baby talk woman.”  
“I’m not, I hate girl’s nights with baby photo watching, recipe exchanging and those pink romper suits. But they want me to be the godmother of one of their twins, means I’ve to check on the soon to be mother and make sure she’s fine. Why don’t you come around for dinner the day after tomorrow night? Maybe Sofia has solved the case and comes home on time.”  
“Two women for dinner? Sounds great.”  
“Have dinner with two women, not two women for dinner. You misunderstood something, Honey.”  
“You must be very nice to me because my ex was so mean… take me in your arms, sit on my lap…the whole program.”  
“Forget it.”  
“Can we watch a heart crying movie together?”  
“Absolutely.”  
“Thanks. I think when I tell the boys they’ll laugh at me. I mean, how can I make myself look cool when a chick ends it with me this way? A text message, not a call, no coffee to break only a text. She didn’t even use all signs.”  
“She isn’t worth being with you.” Sara squeezed his hand. “Come on, we have a look what our students are doing. 

“The AMBER alert on Trevor is out.” Greg came into the living room. Sofia had bagged the buggy and was on her knees, crawling, face close to the stone floor.  
“What are you doing down there?”  
“I try to get a boot print. Mrs. Henderson left the door open, my money is on this is the point of entrance. No visible print but we can make invisible prints visible.” In her hand was a projectina crime lamp in a shallow angle to check the stone floor.   
“Got anything?”  
“Mhm…wait….hah! Gotcha! There’s a print. Looks like sneaker to me.”  
“I get the HT voltage generator out of the car.”   
“Mhm.” Sofia’s attention was still on the print. A single shoe print could tell them a lot about the person who entered the room. Not only the shoe size, also an approximate height. Of course it was possible the print belonged to Mister Henderson, they needed first the size and have a look at his shoes to make sure this print was important evidence.   
“Where do you want the generator?”   
“Right there.” She pointed to the spot and got a lifting film out of her kit. The lifting film had one side coated in thin black plastic whilst the other was the silver exposed side. Placing it over the shoe print with the black plastic film faced downwards Sofia was ready for the next step.   
“Perfect.” Carefully she charged the silver side of the film is to the high voltage via the HT probe and used a roller to roll out any air bubbles. This way the dust from the print stuck to the black underside of the film. When Sofia lifted the foil to have a look at the print Greg handed her fixative spray to preserve the print.   
“Size eleven?” Sofia guessed.   
“Tall man. Wasn’t the doctor a tall man?”  
“Six foot three, to me that’s a tall man.”   
“Mister Henderson doesn’t have so big feet and isn’t tall, just under six foot. It’s the first step from the outside into the room, coming in from the lawn, the grass might have been a little bit wet from the dew and we have our first real piece of evidence.”  
“Hopefully. You talked to Mister Henderson?”  
“Yes. He was at work, I called his work place and they confirmed his story. He got a call from his wife, jumped up and left the office, calling to his colleague he had to go, his baby boy was missing. He made the 911 call from his cell phone. Apparently his wife waited for him instead of calling the police.”  
“So she told me. Sat on the floor, hugged the blanket and cried in it.”  
“Do you believe her?”  
“I don’t have any reasons nor evidence not to believe her. Of course it’s strange she didn’t call 911 when she saw Trevor was gone, then again, she was in shock, you don’t think rational in shock. On the other hand side it could be a made up story to give herself some time. A thirty minute window is a lot of time to kill your baby, dispose the body and pretend to be the worrying and crying mother. Or she killed Trevor before she left the house, put him in the buggy, tells the neighbors he’s asleep and get rid off the body during her walk.”  
“Too dangerous, not all neighbors stay away only because the baby sleeps. Sleeping babies are so cute and most people have to look into the buggy, no matter if the mother likes it or not.”  
“Does she strike you as a killer?”  
“No. Which doesn’t mean she didn’t do it. I checked the front door, no signs of breaking and entering. The glass door is most likely the point of entrance. Jess is canvassing.”  
“Jess? You know the detective good.”  
“She was the primary on my first case and we met a few times during work. A good detective with a dickhead husband.”  
“How do you know he’s a dickhead?”  
“He was once at a scene and behaved like a dickhead. What-ever she sees in him, I don’t see it. He was rude, unfair and treated her like a stupid child. Lawyer.”  
“There’s your explanation why he acted the way he did. Probably she got a client of him in custody and he is too stupid to see the difference between work and private life.”  
“Yeah…dickhead.”  
“Did you get an update on Molly’s case?”  
“I called William, told him about our case. So far we can’t say it’s the same man but the cases are quite similar. What also mean, we’ve a serial kidnapper who could be also a killer.”  
“If the boy was kidnapped the kidnapper was from the beginning after the baby. I asked Mrs. Henderson if anything is missing, she didn’t notice anything and the most valuable thing is the TV. Plus she’s a creature of habit, takes Trevor out every morning around the same time and always the same route. The question is, how did the kidnapper find her? Does he drive around L.A., sees a woman with a buggy, follows her and checks out if she’s the perfect victim? Or is he a relative or friend of the family?”  
“There’s a part in the newspaper once a month that tells the whole world about new born children, their name, the name of the parents and which area they’re from. Jules showed it to me once and we made the decision, we don’t want our babies in there. The people who need to know about the pregnancy, know when Jules is due, will be informed, the rest of the world doesn’t have to know.”  
“Smart decision. People tell too many things of their private life to strangers. Like they have to twitter every step they take and post all their actions on Facebook. No wonder bad guys have it easier to find empty houses or know who is when where.  
I want to work on the outside next, see if our kidnapper left any traces there. Did he come into the garden from the road or the property opposite. They don’t have surveillance here, do they?”  
“No. The neighbors might have one, it’s a good neighborhood, some nice houses.”  
“Expensive. What is his occupation?”  
“Real Estate manager. His company sells mostly houses and estates in North Hollywood and Hollywood Hills. She works there too, wants to get back when Trevor is half a year. The mortgage on the house is high, they need the second income.  
Want me to start the outside? From the street towards the garden, right hand side of the building when you stand in front of it.”   
“You’re the leading CSI, you tell me where to go.” She smiled.   
“To me we’re even and I’ve no problems asking you where you want to work. I don’t need the rank system, we’re both CSI, we’re both professionals, no reason to tell you what to do. You know it yourself.” On the paper he was the leading CSI, their boss called him but for him there was no difference. Sofia’s knowledge was still big and she could still tell him a few things he didn’t know. It was a give and take, the was it was supposed to be.   
“Thanks. I work from the garden back to the road the other side.” Later they had to check the rest of the house, for now their main attention was the outside. A kidnapper comes in from the outside and isn’t in the house. If the perpetrator was inside it wasn’t a kidnapper, it was a family member and they had a complete new situation. Until they had evidence for this they had to work with the first and most likely version of the case. 

Sara got the AMBER alert when she stopped in front of Jules’s house. The message system was installed on her cell phone and when she got the photo and information, she knew it was Sofia’s case. Her lover sent her a text a while ago they were on their way to a new scene, also about a baby, this had to be her case. Another missing baby, this time kidnapped out of the parent’s house.   
She dialed Jules’s number.   
“Don’t tell me you have to work longer.” Greeted the psychologist her.   
“No, I’m in front of your door and come in now.”  
“Great. I’m upstairs, didn’t make it down the stairs today. Could you get some food from the kitchen?”  
“Sure. What do you want?”  
“Everything, I’m pregnant.”  
“Okay.” Sara laughed. That was easy. “Give me a minute.” She got out of the car, walked to the house and got her key out of her pocket. If she went on like this she’d use this key as often as she used her key to her own place. Letting herself in the house she went into the kitchen, opened the fridge and found …emptiness. Or almost emptiness. A few basics, no prepared food, nothing. Not the best condition for a lunch. No frozen pizza or anything else she had just to heat up in the freezer. Time for plan B.   
“When was the last time you went shopping?” She asked Jules when she came into the master bedroom.   
Jules was on the bed, two pillows supported her so she sat more or less. Her belly looked bigger than two days ago, like it was ready to explode. No wonder the brunette didn’t make it down the stairs. All she had to do was slightly lose her balance and this belly would pull her down.   
“Last week. Why?”  
“Your fridge and freezer are empty. Did Greg go shopping?”  
“He got me the things for our barbecue…is there no food left?”  
“Nothing I can offer you within a few minutes. And not much of the rest.”  
“Fuck…sorry babies…oooh…hand! Fast!”   
Confused Sara offered Jules her hand.   
“Pull up please.”  
More or less elegant she pulled the psychologist up on her feet, watched her find her balance. The scene reminded Sara of a boat in huge seas. When Jules fell, Sara wasn't sure if she could pull her back on her feet.   
“Gotta go to the toilet. My bladder must have the size of a walnut, I need to pee all the time.” She swayed to the connected bathroom.   
Sara sat on the edge of the bed, put the banana and apple on the nightstand. These two things were the only food she found. Probably not what Jules had on her mind. The problem was until Greg wasn’t out shopping they couldn’t choose.   
“I tell you, when you want to get pregnant, stick with one child.”  
“I don’t want to get pregnant. Are you all right? Need a hand?”  
“No, just hold on, there’ll be a little earthquake.” She dropped on the bed, put her feet up, leant into the pillows and her eyes caught the fruits. “Are you serious? I don’t want a snack, I want lunch. For three.”  
“We can order lunch.”  
“My fiancé has to go shopping, we need more pizza, chocolate, chips, fries, ice cream…is there no ice cream left?”  
“No.”  
“Bugger. Who delivers ice cream? Baskin and Robbins?”  
“Never heard they deliver.”  
“Ice cream…lasagne…chocolate.”  
“I can go shopping if you want.”  
“And leave me alone for hours? Not to mention it will take even longer until you cooked the lasagne? No way!” Jules grabbed Sara’s hand.   
“Want me to go home and get all those things? We have self cooked frozen lasagne, ice cream and chocolate. I can be back within ten minutes and you can have all the food in twenty minutes. Is this a time you can handle?” Luckily they always cooked more than they could eat, put the rest in the freezer for days, when there was no time to cook or they were too lazy. This way there was always some food left.  
“Would you do that?”  
“Of course.”  
“I love you! Sofia and Greg won’t like it but right now I love no other human more than I love you, Sara. I feel like kissing you long and passionately.”  
“Don’t worry, it’s your hormones that make you want and say that.” Sara grinned. “I go and get you some food and later, when you’re not hungry anymore and feel like a little nap, I do some shopping, get you the most important things. Like ice cream, chocolate and all the other unhealthy things you want.”  
“Do you want to marry me?”   
“No, I let Greg marry you and marry my girlfriend when I’m allowed to do so. Thanks for the offer, I love you too, by the way.” Sara bent down, kissed Jules’s cheek and got pulled into a big hug and got a big sloppy kiss.   
“You’re such a wonderful woman.”  
“And I get the lunch for another wonderful woman. Stay here in bed, I get everything up.”  
“So wonderful.” Jules sighed.   
“Ten minutes and I’ll be back.”  
“Can’t wait until I see you again…and all the food.”  
“Okay. Stay strong.” She blinked at the other woman, got up and left the room. What a great coincidence they hadn’t eaten the frozen lasagne. Normally it never survived more than three days. Too big was the temptation to get it instead of something healthy. As for the ice cream and chocolate, they were always in their house, it was no problem to find them. In various flavors and sizes.   
By car it was only a five minutes drive to her home, a welcome chance to get the dogs and take them with her. They were always up for a run next to the bikes and Jules…had to wait another five minutes. This way she’d eat the apple and banana and had some vitamins. For a doctor her pregnancy diet was not very healthy.   
Stopping her car in front of the foot path to the front door she jumped out, wondering if somebody was at home. Don was at work, Sally too, Tony could be there. He could work a lot from his home computer at the moment why they didn’t need the dog sitter. Tony took the walks with Rantanplan and Scooby as welcome breaks to get his head and eyes off work.   
Grab the food, the chocolate and ice cream, take the leashes and…  
“Sara!”  
She knew this voice, didn’t have to turn to see the person, it belonged to, but did it automatically. There he was. With his shades and a suit.   
“What do you want?” Her brother Sam. Didn’t she tell him she didn’t want any contact with him and their mother? What part of it did he not understand? “I thought I made myself clear. I don’t want you here, don’t want to talk to you or our mother. Leave. You’re not welcome here.” Hey, that worked out much better than the last time he surprised her. She made some progress.   
“You can’t run away forever.”  
“I’m not running, I’m walking. And if you dare to follow me, I call the cops.” To be more precisely, she’d call Don. Or Kyle. Lynn.   
“Isn’t that ridiculous?”  
“You’re a lawyer, is it ridiculous to call the cops when a trespasser doesn’t leave your property? I can’t recall the last lawyer who called it like this and I’ve talked with a lot of lawyers.”  
“I’m your brother.”  
“Only when it comes to DNA.”  
“Don’t be silly.”  
“Sam, leave.”  
“No! No Sara, I won’t leave. You will talk to me, if you like it or not. We will go inside and you won’t call the cops.”  
“No, you go. And you won’t come back.”  
“I won’t go.” He grabbed her arm. “Get us inside.”  
“Fuck off, Sam!” Sara’s words were loud. There was no way he would force her into the house, force her to let him in. The time when somebody forced her to do something was over. She wasn’t a baby anymore, she could fight for herself.   
“No, we go inside. Stop fighting, there’s no way…”   
A shot was fired. Both stopped and looked up from where the shot came.   
“Hey asshole, ya better leave her alone or I turn ya fucking dickhead into a Swiss chess, ya understand me?”   
Sara had to look twice to recognize Tony. What did he have on his head? Why was he talking like this? And what happened to his face?  
“Maybe I should call the cops.”  
“Do that, saves me a call. You’re trespassing again.” She freed herself. “Leave me alone, Sam. I meant it, I don’t want to talk to you or mom.” With fast strides she walked to the front door, unlocked it, went inside, closed the door and leant onto it. Done. She was inside, he was outside.   
Immediately she was surrounded by the dogs.   
“Hey guys, how are you?” Pulling both of the in her arms she allowed herself a weak second, shed a tear in their hair until she heard Tony coming downstairs. Back to normal, back to the strong woman. She knew, if she lost it now, it was over.   
“Are you all right?”  
“Yeah, thanks for giving my words a nice background. I guess he understood he isn’t welcome here.”  
“He’s your brother? Sorry, I had the balcony door open and heard everything while I was on the computer.”  
“It’s okay. Yes, he is my brother and before he came here a few weeks ago to celebrate a family reunion, I haven’t seen him in almost thirty years. As for me we can add another thirty years on it, or forty. He isn’t a part of my life and I don’t want him in my life.”  
“He left when you were young.”  
“When I was young, when I needed him. Now I don’t want him, don’t need him.”  
“Sounds fair to me.”  
“I didn’t know you’ve got a gun. Your landlady won’t like it, we better not tell her.” Sara changed the topic. Enough of Sam and her past.   
“My gun isn’t a real gun, it’s part of my new role. Sounds real, doesn’t it?”  
“Absolutely. You scared a lawyer away.”  
“Did you like my bad guy accent?”  
“It kind of overdid the scene. Maybe I know you too well so I can’t really see you as a bad guy.”  
“Mhm…I need to work on that. And on my other work to pay the rent.”  
“You better do so. I take the dogs with me to Jules.”  
“They had a walk half an hour ago with me and should be fine for a while.”  
“Doesn’t matter, I want my babies around.”  
“Two mothers and four babies.”  
“Two of them are not out yet.”  
“Can happen every day, maybe tonight while you with her, auntie Sara.” He grinned and walked up the stairs.   
Auntie Sara? If Sara wasn’t this graceful he chased Sam away, Tony would deserve some trouble for calling her auntie Sara. 

Sofia was able to reconstruct the way of the kidnapper into the living room. How he or she came in was clear, it was the glass door and Greg found traces in the garden that suggested he or she came from the street. Some broken branches told him somebody was here not too long ago. Another set of shoe prints in the same size Sofia lifted in the living room confirmed their assumption.   
“The trace ends here.” They stood in front of the garage. The wall was over two yards high.   
“If he went left, towards the street, he was without any cover. After all the precaution he took in the hospital it’s very unlikely he took this risk.”   
“If we chase the same person.” Greg said. “Don’t go ahead the evidence.”  
“Well Grissom, I don’t. Everything points towards it.”  
“Two missing babies, not the same sex, not the same area of the town. One taken away from a hospital, one from their parent’s living room. Both times the kidnapper knew the place, checked it out before.”  
“Mrs. Henderson goes the same route every day, it wasn’t difficult to follow her, study her routines. There’s a certain routine in a hospital.”  
“Did she give birth in the same hospital?”  
“No. Do you have any news from there? Anything on the faked doctor?”  
“They talked to all employees and former employees of the baby ward, nothing points to one of them. Five fit the description of the man we’re looking for, all five have alibis. The police extended their search to former interns, doctors and cleaners of this ward.”  
“Husbands and boyfriends of the females. It looked like he doesn’t work alone, there could be a woman who works at the hospital and gave him all the information. How many people of the baby ward live in this area?”  
“I don’t know, I’ll let them check. What makes you think it’s the same person, Sofia?”  
“Beside my gut feeling that doesn’t count? I don’t believe in coincidences. Two babies in twenty-four hours, both times the kidnapper took some time to prepare, this isn’t a copy cat case.”  
“So where did he go from here? If not towards the street? Up on the garage? Also no cover. Leaves the fence.”   
“Not a problem for a tall man to climb over it. With a baby in his hands harder. Probably he used chloroform again to be sure Trevor won’t cry. Get here with the baby, lift it over the fence to your accomplice and off you go. We need to check the other side of the fence.”  
“Through the garden of the neighbor? Another risk but lets have a look.” They walked to the front of the house. To get to the house on the other side of the garden they had to walk around the block. A white house, two stories with roughly the same sized garden like the Henderson’s and a picket fence.   
Greg rang the doorbell a couple of times, nobody answered it. He tried it with knocking on the door and got the same result.   
“Are you looking for the Flinders.” An elderly man with a tiny dog walked by.   
“If that’s the name of the family who lives here, yes.” Greg went back to the road. The dog growled at him.   
“Hercules, don’t.”   
“My name is Greg Sanders, I work with the police.” He held his badge out. “Do you know how I can contact the Flinders?”  
“Police? I saw a lot of police around the corner, what happened?”  
“We’re working on a case. Where are the Flinders?”  
“On vacation, left four days ago and won’t be back another week. They asked me to have an eye on their house, make sure the light goes on every night.”  
“Did you have an eye on the house this morning?”  
“No, I went shopping this morning. Why?”  
“Do you think the Flinders mind when we have a look in their garden?”  
“You’re the police, you can look wherever you want. I worked as a security guard in a shopping mall for years, cops deserve all the support they need. Have a look around, I take Hercules away, he doesn’t like you.”  
“Looks like.” Greg send a forced smile down to the little dog that still tried to get its teeth into his leg. Hercules. A big name for a dog smaller than the average cat.   
“You’re better with my dogs.” Sofia said when Greg was back.   
“Rantanplan and Scooby are dogs, this was a mutant cat, an ugly one. The owner of the house are on vacation. The perfect setup for our kidnapper to walk through their garden unseen.”  
“He can leave the Henderson’s garden unseen but what about this one?” Greg took his cell phone and dialed a number. “Jess? Where are you? We’re at the house behind the garden, the evidence told us, our kidnapper could have been in there. Can you send an officer to canvass the surrounded houses?…you do it yourself? Thanks. We’re in the garden…no, we don’t need you to clean the area, we’re fine…yes I’ve my lieutenant, I feel safe. Bye.”   
“Your lieutenant? Who is a lieutenant?”  
“Former lieutenant. You can take care of me.”  
“Always. I doubt there will be somebody around, if he was here he’s long gone.”  
“Probably.” They walked around the house into the garden. A few lost flowers were on the left side, bushes hid the fence to the neighbors.   
“The garage is over there, we must find the traces in this area.” Carefully, watching their steps, they walked through the bush to the fence. Lawn made it hard to see anything.   
“This is the place…I don’t see a shoeprint.” Greg got down. “I take it back, look there. The ground is slightly uneven. Like somebody jumped down the fence and his weight pushed down the grass. Do you think we get a print?”  
“Not a print but a size.” Sofia turned and watched the ground. “No other prints, but we also didn’t leave any traces. So when the kidnapper handed Trevor over the fence there won’t be any traces of the second person, only from the kidnapper when he jumped down. Want me to start here on the print or somewhere else?”  
“Where would you like to start?”  
“Here with you. We can’t really say where they left from here and need to check the whole area.”  
“You left, I right? After I saved our print here.”  
“Okay, I start and work the area straight to the left side of the house.”   
***  
Sara let the dogs off the leash when she was in the house. They had been here before, but started to sniff around for all the changes since their last visit.   
“I’m back with two wiggling visitors and food.”   
“It took you longer than ten minutes.”  
“We came by bike. Your food is on its way into the microwave and I prepare a huge bowl of ice cream.”  
“You better hurry or…oh hey boys.” Obviously the dogs found Jules on her bed.   
Starting the microwave with the lasagne and putting her spinach pizza into the oven, Sara took a deep breath. Keep it together. Keep it together. Keep it together. She was strong, she told Sam to leave, was cool when Tony came down, took the dogs, rode the bike back to Jules and…and she knew one wrong word of the psychologist and her strength was gone. Her hope was, Jules was too hungry to notice something was wrong. Or maybe Greg sent her a text and her thoughts were with her future husband.   
Which got her thoughts to Sofia. Since the one text this morning Sara hadn’t received any other text. Not a good sign. Her lover also didn’t reply to her text. She had to work the case of the missing baby. The police officer on the radio said, the baby vanished out of the house in the Hollywood Hills after his mother was out for a walk with him and left him for two minutes alone in the living room. Surely there would be people who blame the mother for leaving the baby alone, but for Christ sake, it was their own house. You were supposed to leave your sleeping baby for two minutes alone in your own living room.   
What did these news do to Jules? Did she worry about her babies? Make plans how to make sure they were safe? It was impossible to be around 24/7. Especially in hospital. Jules’s mother didn’t work on the baby ward, she couldn’t tell the doctors and nurses there to stay the whole time with their grandchildren and it wasn’t possible.   
Sofia wanted a baby too. Did until she got this case. Parents. Could they be good parents? Sara didn’t doubt Sofia was a great mother, a loving mother, but could she be a good mother too? How was she supposed to give a child a steady life when she couldn’t organize her own life in a way she had a couple of months without trouble. And what child wanted to be born into a family like Sara’s family? Sooner or later their child would ask for the other grandmother and what should she say? Your grandmother is in prison, she’s a murderer? She’s in hospital, she’s a hopeless nutcase. No, her family wasn’t what a child needed or wanted.   
The ring of the microwave got her out of her thoughts. She turned the lasagne upside down so it got heat from both sides, started the microwave again and prepared the ice cream bowl. A block full of chocolate on top should make Jules forget everything else than food.   
With a tray and all the food on it she walked up to Jules, who came out of the bathroom.   
“So, now I should be fine for ten minutes…gosh, that smells great…I’m starving.”   
“All yours.”   
“What about you?”  
“Mine is downstairs. Start, I need to get it up.”   
“Sara…?”  
“Eat Jules, you’re hungry.” It was more a flight than a walk out of the room. When Jules started her sentence with ‘Sara’ and gave her this look, she knew it was best to get out of there ASAP. Why did Jules know something was wrong? Her eyes had been on the food the whole time, it was impossible she could know what happened.   
Slowly she returned with her pizza and a bottle of water and found Jules on her bed, the food not touched and both dogs very interested in it. This wasn’t good.   
“You can start, it’s not necessary you wait for me.”  
“What’s wrong, Sara?”  
“Nothing.”  
“Since when do you lie to me?”  
“Why don’t you eat your lasagne before it’s cold? Or is it still cold? Shall I get it back into the microwave?” Sara wanted too take the plate and literally jumped back when Jules reached out her hand to her.   
“Don’t!”   
“Sara…”  
“No, Jules, don’t. I keep myself together, when you touch me my self-control is gone. I know it. Don’t. Please. Let me take your plate downstairs and heat up the lasagne again. You can start with the ice cream first, I won’t tell your twins later.”  
Sara put her plate on the nightstand, reached for the plate and got pulled onto the bed and straight into Jules’s arms. So much for no touching. And her self-control. Immediately she rolled up next to the other woman, held on to her and her face was covered in tears.   
“Fuck.” What was wrong with her? Why wasn’t she able to behave like an adult? Why did she end up crying all the time when something happened and she saw Jules afterwards?   
“It’s all right Honey.” Softly Jules stroke over her back, let her cry and held on without any more questions. It was written all over Sara’s face something had happened between her leaving to get the food and coming back. Maybe other people didn’t see it, for Jules it was an open secret.   
“Sam’s back.”  
Surprised Jules held in for a second. Sam? Sara’s brother? He shouldn’t be here, shouldn’t be in town and especially not around Sara.   
“What does he want?”  
“Talk.”  
“You told him you don’t want to talk to him. I was there, you made yourself clear, I know you told him later again, with a gun, what else do you have to do to make him understand?”  
“Don’t know.”  
“Did he hurt you?” There were marks on Sara’s wrists, nothing big, they were already fainting away. But they weren’t there before.   
“He held me, not very gentle. Tony was there, he helped me. With a TV gun. Sounded like a real one and scared Sam enough to let me go.” Sara tried to sit and ended even closer in Jules’s arms.   
“You stay where you are until you’ve stopped shaking. And when Scooby gets his head one inch closer to your pizza I’ll throw my book at him. Scooby, no! Don’t you dare to eat Sara’s pizza, she will have it herself. Sit down! Down! When my kids hear as bad as your dog I’ll have a problem…two problems.”  
“Use your hocus-pocus to make them listen.”  
“Hocus-pocus? Did you talk to my mother recently?”  
“No. It must be magic, all you need is one look and you see something is wrong and I’ve no chance to escape, end in your arms and tell you everything. You’re not my shrink anymore. This isn’t right.”  
“Psychotherapist please, not shrink. As my client I never held you like this, you weren’t in my bedroom and of course I see when something is wrong. It’s my job, I know you and feel your stress. It was stupid of you to think you could get away with it.”  
“You didn’t even look at me when you wanted to start. Your eyes were on your food, not me. How did you do that?”  
“I sensed it. No eyes needed for that. Like I sense it’s better now. You’re allowed to sit, don’t you dare to move away. We’ll both sit here, have our lunch and when you feel like talking about your idiot brother, we can do it. This isn’t therapy, I won’t make you talk. We can also eat in silence.”  
“Sooner or later you’ll make me talk anyway, you already made me talk a lot.” Sara got Jules’s plate back from the nightstand and took her own. The pizza wasn’t hot anymore, a look at the ice cream told her, it was more a sauce but who cared for irrelevant facts? 

“Did you noticed the lawn was mowed?” Jess watched Sofia leaning into a garbage can.   
“No.” Sofia turned and looked at the lawn. “It doesn’t look like. Why?”  
“Because one of the neighbor saw two gardener leaving this morning. Apparently they mowed the lawn. Can you confirm this, CSI Curtis?”  
“To me the lawn doesn’t look like somebody mowed it this morning but I’ll check on it, detective.”  
“I know you were a CSI before and you…kind of enjoy this job …for me it’s weird to call you CSI Curtis, you’ve been lieutenant Curtis since we met the first time.”  
“One of your colleagues called me lieutenant yesterday. Said I still deserve the rank and the honor of a lieutenant.”  
“He’s right. Do you want me to call you lieutenant?”  
“Why don’t you call me Sofia like you did before? Makes things easier.”  
“Deal. So we both see the lawn hasn’t been mowed. The neighbor claimed he heard a mowing machine, even saw it and gave me a description of it.”  
“Also of the gardener?”  
“No, his attention was on the mowing machine, exactly the one he wants to have too. I wrote it down, tried to get a few details about the gardener off him. All he could tell me was, it were two men and they looked Hispanic to him. Couldn’t say how tall, thin or not, hair color, nothing. The mowing machine looked new, clean, this was the only thing that irritated him. He was impressed how good they cleaned their machine.”  
“They were here with a van?”  
“Yes. A black one, no number, no name on it.”  
“You don’t have a gardening company and have no advertise-ment on your van….look what we have here.” Sofia leaned back into the garbage can until her feet lift up the ground and it looked for a second like she’d fell into it before she got back out. In her hand a tissue. “Shall we make a test how good your detective nose is?”  
“You except me to sniff garbage? You’re the CSI, you can sniff it. It’s your job description, not mine.”  
“Not garbage, evidence.” The blonde sniffed. Slightly sweet. “Chloroform. Like in the garbage can in Hollywood Palms yesterday.” For her this wasn't a coincidence, this was the connecting evidence.   
“Seriously?”  
“Yes. We got our connection, I knew there is one. My guts don't lie.” She bagged the tissue.   
“Aren’t you ahead of the evidence?”  
“Do you believe there is so much coincidence?”  
“No. Want me to send an officer to the lab with it?”  
“Would be helpful, this way I can work on your lawn mow theory.” She handed the bag to Jess. “Fast and reliable please, detective Guillyard.”  
“Sometimes you still sound like a lieutenant, CSI Curtis. Will you be fine without me for a minute or two?”   
“Got a gun, the last time I did target shooting I was better than the average lieutenant.”  
“I take that as a yes.” Jess took the bag and walked away.   
Motivated Sofia turned to the lawn. A connection. Her gut feeling was still good, she could still rely on it. This was a boost she needed, not for her ego, but for her joy of the new job. The sense of achievement made being the CSI less…well it wasn’t a bad job but…when she chased down a suspect, squeezed the needed information out of somebody in interrogation, it was a good feeling and this was the same good feeling. A makes-you-happy-feeling.   
Step by step she walked from the house side to the fence. If there had been a running mowing machine on the lawn she’d find the place. One piece of evidence that helped, maybe she had a run and got another one that matched to the story of the witnesses. They needed more good news, more good evidence to get closer to the kidnapper, close to the babies and get them back home to their parents.   
“Gotcha again!” The mowing machine had been here and it ran. On the same spot. Sofia took various photos of a piece of lawn that was shorter than the rest. She was particular interested in the area where the person who pushed the machine must have stand and if the machine lost some oil or anything that could help them to identify the person or the machine. A few examples of the grass, the soil and then she started to work her way from here to the fence. The kidnapper and his accomplice must have walked here, maybe Greg and she missed some evidence. They didn’t know where exactly to look, now she had a better idea. Time to give it another shot. 

Sara watched Jules. Her breathe was even and her face relaxed. The perfect picture of a sleeping woman. Soundless she got up, took their plates and carried them downstairs. Scooby and Rantanplan followed her and she let them out into the garden. The fence would stop the dogs from walking away. If Sam did follow her? It was possible he stayed close to the house, watched her leave and was somewhere around here now. The streets had been busy, he never had a chance to stop her and talk to her alone. Should she send Sofia a text and tell her she was with Jules and would stay until the blonde and Greg came back home? With the right words she could make it sound like she worried about the pregnant woman, was here to comfort her, while it was Sara who needed the comfort.   
The doorbell rang. Not one of Jules’s girlfriends. Please not. And if it had to be one – not more than one – please let it be one of the less annoying ones. When the whole bunch was in front of the door, going back home and possible meeting Sam again wasn’t the worst option anymore. Prepared for the worst Sara opened the door and breathed a sigh of relief. Not one or a few girlfriends, Jules’s mother, doctor Bendler.   
“Hello Sara, what a surprise to see you.”  
“Hey doc, come in Jules is in bed asleep. I’m her afternoon entertainer.”  
“Looks like she isn’t the best audience.”  
“No, we had a lot of food, that makes you always tired.”   
“You look tired too. And your eyes are a little bit red. I imply you didn’t smoke any dope, you weren’t asleep which leave me to the conclusion you had a bad day.”  
“I had better ones. Same for you, I guess. Your hospital got some bad comments in the press today.”  
“It’s not my hospital, I don’t own it, I work there. And most of the things written about poor security is bullshit.” Doctor Bendler went into the kitchen and started the coffee machine. “You know the security system, you know no place can be absolutely safe and we do everything to make this a sad single case.”  
“Are there any news?”  
“Not that I know of. You’ve better connection to the police and the CSI team.”  
“I haven’t talked to Sofia since she left for work this morning. She’s busy, has a new case and …there are other things on her mind than keeping me posted.”  
“Are your red eyes because of her?”  
“No.”  
“Good. Otherwise I had to tell her off when she’s with me next week. Did Jules help you out?”  
“There’s no chance I walk in here with something that worries me and Jules doesn’t get it out of me. Your daughter is the most amazing psychologist I’ve ever met and sometimes I regret I gave her up as my therapist.”  
“You’ve got her as your friend now.”  
“Which is better, I’m aware of that. It doesn’t make her less the perfect shrink for me.”  
“Stop talking, get your asses up here, I can smell coffee and want one!” Jules shouted from the bedroom.   
“In her dreams. A tea is all she gets. Are you with me on that, Sara?”  
“Yes doc.”  
“Good. And stop calling me doc, you’ll be the godmother of my grandchild, call me Alison. In a few days you’ll be officially a part of the family. Didn’t I tell you this already? I don’t like it when I’ve to repeat myself.”  
“Yes do…don’t worry, it won’t happen again.” Sara smiled. A part of the family. She had a part of her family she wanted to be far, far away. If her new family could help her with that?   
“Where’s my coffee and cake?”  
“Tea and banana.” Doctor Bendler said, put both on the nightstand and kissed her daughter. “You look like you need a doctor, Honey.”  
“I need a coffee.”  
“When I can see my lovely grandchildren you can have a coffee. Until then you drink tea. You like tea more than coffee anyway.”  
“Pregnancy changes a lot of things…damn…toilet again. I hate my bladder, why can’t I sit for a few minutes without running to the toilet all the time?”  
“Need a hand?”  
“Use both to get me out of bed. Tomorrow I might need a crane to get lifted out of bed.”  
“Maybe it’s time to get into hospital.”  
“Only if they get these two out the same day.” Jules swayed to the bathroom. “It’s like I’m drunk…oh I want a cocktail….”  
Sara looked at doctor Bendler when Jules vanished into the bathroom. “She must be in pain.”  
“Definitely. The only way to get her out of pain fast is a caesarean. So far she doesn’t want one, there are no medical reason to overrule her wish. Believe me every time I come here I wish I could get her into my car, straight to the hospital and have her carry her babies in her arms a few hours later. Not an option for her.”  
“We can’t make her go there.”  
“Do you believe Hollywood Palms is a safe place for Jules and the twins?”  
“Yes. I doubt the kidnapper will be back, people are alert, they’ll check on everybody twice. Too risky for him.”  
“Did the Whitemeyers get any notes for ransom?”  
“Not that I know of. The hospital?”  
“Not that I know of.” Doctor Bendler smiled faintly. “The chances to get Molly back are small, aren’t they?”  
“Over thirty hours. Nothing is impossible.”  
“A lot of things are possible, most of them aren’t good.”  
“No.”  
“You two won’t try to talk me into home birth, will you?” Jules was back, holding her back, sweat on her forehead. “Mom?”  
“I want you on maternity ward, now and not later.”  
“Sara?”  
“You’re the mother, it’s your decision where you want to give birth to your twins. In my opinion a hospital is the best place, there are doctors. I’d like to have some people around who can help you and the babies.”  
“Greg isn’t happy about the hospital. He wants a private guard for our babies.”  
“Believe me Honey, I’m with him on that. It’s not possible but if it would, I’d do everything to get you and the babies a bodyguard. Like I’d like to have a doctor checked on you twice a day.”  
“Mom, I’m pregnant not dangerously ill.”  
“Nevertheless I’d feel better with a doctor by your side.”  
“I can call 911 whenever I feel something isn’t right.” Jules dropped back on her bed. It wasn’t like her life was at risk, she was pregnant, women gave birth to babies ever since there was human being. It wasn’t anything complicated, it was natural. 

With the prepared dinner in the fridge Sara felt a little bit like a housewife. It was almost eight in the evening and Sofia should be back any second. Fourteen hours at work were more than enough for her lover. Of course it was hard to stop when you had a case like the blonde, every minute counts, every piece of evidence could be the one you need to get the kidnapper but just like the parents needed her to work the evidence, Sofia needed to rest to see the evidence. A lesson Sara had to learn as well.   
Scooby and Rantanplan lay lazy in front of the bed, busy in a snoring competition. Together with them and Don Sara walked around the reservoir an hour ago. Tony mentioned Sam’s apparel to Don and he insisted on joining Sara. She didn’t argue, it had been her plan to ask him to come with her. A second meeting with her brother today wasn’t anything she wanted or could handle. Not without somebody by her side.   
Slow steps on the staircase indicated somebody came up to the third story. The fact that the dogs woke up and ran to the stairs told Sara, her lover was home.   
Tired, half dropped on the dogs, the blonde sat down on a chair. “Hey boys, did you miss me? Sure you did. Your mommy is a bad mommy, she’s always away and doesn’t have any time for you. I’m sorry I can’t go for a walk, play with you. Soon there’ll be more time and we’ll go to the beach, you can run and swim and I’ll take a lot of treats with me. How does this sound?”  
“Like you forgot your girlfriend.”   
Sofia’s eyes met Sara. “I might forget a lot of things, you’re always on my mind.”   
“Where am I in your promise to the dogs?”  
“With us on the beach, in my arms. We have a picnic, share a lot of kisses and don't leave each others arms.”  
“Sounds good.” Sara walked to her lover and kissed her gently. “You look tired.”  
“I am tired.”  
“Why don’t you get ready for bed, I heat up your dinner and you can eat in bed with me.”  
“Want to be my dinner?”  
“We can talk about me being your dessert. I didn’t have dessert neither, by the way.”  
“Want me to be your dessert?”  
“I can’t think of something more sweet and delicious. Before dessert you get pasta, cheese sauce, salad and ham.”  
“Dessert sounds better, the main course is for the stomach, dessert for the heart.” Sofia got up, hugged Sara and snuggled into her arms. “Sorry I was so long away. If there was a possibility I’d come home earlier.”  
“Babe, I worked your job, I know sometimes you don’t have a choice.”  
“My girlfriend understands me, doesn’t accuse me of working too much, prepares dinner for me, I’m a lucky woman to have you.” For a second Sofia closed her eyes and concentrated on Sara, her arms, her smell. Home. She was home. Sara was home. There was no place in the world she’d rather be than with her lover. Some colleagues went to a bar after work, sat there for an hour or longer before they went home. Impossible for Sofia. After a long day at work, hours away from her lover, she had to be back home ASAP. This was where she belonged.   
“I’ll be with you shortly.” Another kiss and Sofia got out of Sara’s arms and walked into the bathroom. Time to get ready for bed. After dinner she didn’t want to go downstairs. Sara, her arms, their bed, was the only destination for tonight. At eight o’clock at night.   
“Did you eat?” Jumping on one foot Sofia got from the bathroom into the bed. No need to put back on her prosthesis.   
“Yeah, I had no idea when you come back and ate with Jules and her mother.”  
“Dinner with doctor Bendler? Wow.”  
“Alison. I’m supposed to call her Alison because I’ll be the godmother of her grandchild which makes me a part of the family.”  
“Part of a doctor family, impressing. And when will you tell me what’s wrong? Or is only Jules allowed to know?”  
Sara swallowed. Of course Sofia saw something was wrong and of course she knew when Sara was at Jules’s house she told the therapist everything. It wasn’t like she wanted to keep it a secret but…Sofia had so many things on her hands, why make her life more complicated? Her lover needed her head for the case.   
“Don’t you have enough things on your hands?”  
“Did you forget who my highest priority is?” Sofia put her half eaten dinner aside.   
“No.” Sara took the plate back. “You eat, I talk. Please. As I know you, you didn’t eat the whole day, please don’t push your dinner aside.”  
“Is it only the case that makes you not want to talk to me? Or is there more?”  
“I didn’t want to talk to Jules but…you know she has this way to make me talk even when I don’t want to. It’s stupid and so is the reason why I’m…different. Sam is back.”  
“Your brother?”  
“Yeah. When I came home today he was here, in front of the house, waited for me. He wants to talk to me, I don’t want to talk to him. We argued, he tried to get into the house, Tony stopped him. If you see a weapon in his room, it’s not real and part of his new role. It does make a real sound and scared Sam away. We both know he’ll be back and I’m sick and tired of him. Him being here today means the next days I’ll look the whole time over my shoulder, make sure he isn’t around.”  
Sofia pulled Sara in her arms. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there – again. Two out of three times I wasn’t there to help you. Quite bad for your girlfriend.”  
“Nobody knew he’d be here today.”  
“Shall I ask for a few days off? So you’re not alone.” The blonde hated the idea her lover would meet her brother again and was alone without any support or help.   
“No, you have a case to work on. How is your new case? It’s the boy, who is all over the TV, isn't he? I saw the AMBER alert on today.”  
“Yes.” Sofia respected Sara unspoken wish of changing the topic. They’d talk about Sam later, for now the brunette wanted to know how her girlfriend was, what happened to her. “His case is connected to the other case, I found another tissue with chloroform.”  
“Is the tissue the same brand?”  
“Yes it is. They ran the chloroform, it should be the same. Sara, how can I help you with Sam?” Enough case, back to Sara and her brother. Their personal problems were more important than work. At least when they were off the clock.   
“You can’t. Besides trespassing he doesn’t do anything he isn’t allowed to do. We can’t send him to jail for it.”  
“No, but make his time here uncomfortable. Lynn and Kyle will drive past our house a few times if you want. He helped you out once and he’ll do it again. Same for Don.”  
“I know. Tomorrow I’ve a day off, he can’t surprise me at work this way. Tony is at home, I ask him to join me when I walk the dogs. And the rest of the time I will spend with Jules. She can’t do much anymore, so I make sure she gets food and water. And no, I don’t turn to my former therapist and leave you out.”  
“She does know things I’ve no idea of, doesn’t she?”  
“Yes. She asked a lot of questions when I was in therapy, questions that hurt to hear and were even worse to answer. They made me want to stop therapy a few times. It was necessary to help me, I didn’t see it at that time. When the time is right I’ll tell you about it, but those are not nice details, not details I want to remember. They’ve nothing to do with you, with my love to you. And if it wasn’t for me being strange sometimes they have nothing to do with me now.”  
“Tell me whenever you’re ready.”  
“Are you mad I’ll be with Jules tomorrow?”  
“No, of course not. She’s our friend, she needs help and she’s good for you. My boss had told me I can’t have a day off until we’ve solved the case anyway. So even when I ask him with puppy eyes, it's unlikely he says yes. I'd try it if you want. Stay with Jules. As I know you, you’ll be awake when I get up. We could have breakfast together if you want.”  
“No way I’d miss a breakfast with you.” Sara smiled a bit, kissed her lover. Compared to a few minutes with Sofia a sleep in was unimportant. Every second she could spend with Sofia was priceless.   
“Why don’t I drop you and the dogs off at Jules’s place?”  
“Because Jules will sleep in and won’t get up when Greg does. No, I’ll have breakfast with you, walk the dogs – Sam won’t be awake and here this early – and see her later. Bring her a second breakfast, as she's hungry the whole time. Oh, your mother called.”  
“What does your mother-in-law want?” Sofia grinned. Her mother called Sara the whole time her daughter-in-law and asked Sofia at least once per phone call when they’ll get married and her daughter shouldn’t dare to let such a great woman go away. She better made sure this woman stayed with her for the rest of their lives and ask her to marry her. And if they dared to get married without Sofia’s parents, they’d be in trouble bigger than any Middle-East country ever had.   
“Tell us she and her husband will be here before Christmas. She can’t take a few days off over Christmas so they’ll be here a week earlier and she expects us to celebrate Christmas then. Get a tree, presents and be in a perfect Christmas mood from the fourteenth to the twentieth. I told her, we’ll try to have a few days off during that time, that we love them and look forward to see them.”  
“You tell her about Sam and she’ll be here ASAP.”  
“No need to tell her.”  
“One day you’ll learn keeping things secret doesn’t work in this family. Not in your doctor family and not in your cop family. Your mother-in-law loves you, when she sees, senses or hears you’ve got some trouble, she’ll be here to fight for you. You’re her baby too. And she wants you as her daughter-in-law. Almost as much as I want you as my wife.”  
“Are you popping the question?” Sara cocked her head and smirked at her girlfriend.   
“I wish I could. What if I do?”  
“We need to visit our billiard friends.”  
“You’d say yes?”  
“When you try me you’ll know.” Sara blinked and kissed Sofia. “I love you.”  
“Love you too. And as soon as we’ve both the head clear I might pop the question. Why don’t you ask me?”  
“Who said I won’t? Might happen any time soon. Or as soon as we're allowed to get married.”   
“You make me…happy. Right now very happy. You did think of us…staying together… forever?” Sofia had no idea why every time Sara mentioned something like this, she felt like a school girl, who got asked out for her first date. Her lover told her a couple of times, she loved her and wanted to spend her life with her. Nevertheless, it made her want to hug the whole world whenever Sara said it.   
“For a smart woman you ask stupid questions. I love you, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I think of you and me together for the rest of our lives all the time. There’s nobody else I want with me. You are my life, Sofia. And as soon as California allows us to get married again I’ll drag you to a priest or whoever will make you my wife.”  
“W-wow.” Sofia was stunned. “Really?”  
“With who else would I want to spend the rest of my life?”   
“I…I don’t know.”  
“Me neither.” Sara nibbled on Sofia’s throat. “Are you done with your dinner, Honey?”  
“Why?” Sofia took a deep breath. Her plate wasn’t empty, but her hunger was gone.   
“Because it’s time for dessert. Yours and mine!”

7th of December

“I wish you had a job where it doesn’t matter when I make you come in late.” Sara pulled Sofia in her arms and kissed her. “Why do the hours we spend together always fly while the time without you feels like eternity?”   
“Scientifically time is always the same. Emotionally being apart from the one you love is pain and feels longer because you’re craving for me.”  
“I do.” With the blonde still in her arms Sara closed her eyes. It was time to say goodbye, time to let her lover go to work, they couldn’t stay forever like this in the kitchen. For a moment the brunette was tempted to ask if she should join her lover at work. Another set of CSI eyes, more chances to solve the case. A stupid thought, Sofia’s boss wouldn’t allow it, but it was there, it seemed to be a chance to be together the whole day.   
“Will you be okay?”  
“Yes.”  
“If Sam is here and won’t leave, call Kyle or Lynn. They’ll come over. Don knows about your brother, he’ll tell them.”  
“Okay. But I think he won’t come over to Jules’s place. And you pick me up in the evening, no chances for big bad brother to bother me.”  
“Borrow Tony’s faked gun.”  
“I’ve my own gun, a real one.”  
“You can’t use this one without a good reason.”   
"Says my cop lover."  
"Says your CSI lover, who is part of the law enforcement team too and has to tell you those things - not that you don't know them yourself." Sofia grinned.   
“Don’t worry, if I shoot him, I’ll let it look like self-defense, lieutenant. Do you want to tell me what’s wrong with your leg?” Sara had noticed this morning Sofia walked differently than usually. She tried not to put weight on her left leg, like it was painful to walk normal.  
“Just some pain, mixed with phantom pain.”  
“Why don’t you have a doctor look after it?” When the blonde was in pain, she had to do something for it. Most time of the day she was on her feet, there weren't many chances to rest her leg; especially not when she worked a hot case.   
“No time.”  
“Sofia…”  
“I will call my doc when it gets worse, so far it will be okay as soon as the painkiller works. Otherwise, maybe I see ‘Alison’ when I pick you up tonight and she can have a look.”  
“Promise me you see a doctor first thing tomorrow morning when the pain isn’t gone. I know you work a hot case and can’t stay away, if there’s something serious with your leg and you don’t go until it’s too late, you’ll have to stay at home longer. Go, let the doctor check on it and everything will be fine.”  
“Promise.”   
“Can I see it?”  
“No! Why?” Sofia didn’t need to see Sara’s eyes to know she hurt her. It was a stupid answer, an answer that told Sara, Sofia didn’t trust her, kept her out. Exactly what she always asked her lover not to do.   
“Okay.” More pain in the voice. It felt like somebody squeezed her heart.   
“Why do you want to see it?”  
“Forget it, doesn’t matter.” Sara got up.   
“Don’t go. Please.”   
“You have to go to work. I don’t want to be the reason why you run late.” It was after six in the morning, dayshift didn’t start this early, Sofia had at least another hour, both knew it.   
“Sara…”  
“Yeah?” Not this ‘yeah’. It wasn’t a ‘yeah’, it was a ‘leave me alone, you hurt me and right now I don’t want to see you, be near you. You disappointed me’. The worst she could get from Sara.  
No more words, words didn’t help, they hurt. Time for action. She jumped up, clenched her teeth when a sharp pain drove through her left leg up into her arms, and followed her lover. Just before the stairs she got her, held her back by pulling her into her arms. Not entirely happy with it Sara let it happen.   
“I’m sorry. It was stupid, a stupid thing to say, a stupid way to act. I hurt you and you have all reasons to be mad. All the time I ask you to be honest, to open up and when you ask me the same, I ignore your request. Sorry.”  
“It’s your decision, Sofia. You say no, I accept it.”  
“No, forget it. Forget my stupid behavior. You know I’m stupid sometimes when it comes to my leg. It’s a weak excuse, I know it, I should change it. It’s just…I love you and I trust with all my life but…my leg…I don’t feel comfortable when you look at it, I don’t feel comfortable when I look at it. The wound is healed, there are scars, nothing to be ashamed of and still…I find myself sometimes looking at me in front of the mirror and feel disgust by what I see. When you see my leg…what’s left of it…I’m afraid you might feel the same. It’s stupid because you’re not as dumb as I am…but I can’t help it. Yet. Maybe my therapist gets me there one day. Right now I’m not there and I can only hope you will wait for until I’m there and don’t get sick of me before.  
I love you.” Fighting with the tears, a battle she lost after a few seconds, Sofia didn’t dare to look at Sara. Her explanation was a bad joke and her excuses didn’t make the pain, she caused her lover, undone.   
“I’m the last person to judge you, I’ve been there myself, did the same things you did today. They come in natural. Doesn’t make them less painful, doesn’t make them any less stupid.   
I love you too, Sofia.”  
“But?”  
“No but. I love you. The last minutes didn’t change that.”  
“But you’re disappointed.”  
“To say I’m not hurt would be a lie. I can understand you however.” A door that was open downstairs told them they weren’t the only one anymore who were awake.   
“Can we continue this in our room? Please.”  
“Don’t you want to go to work? You’ve got two hot cases.”  
“No hot case is as important to me as you are.” Carefully Sofia took Sara’s hand and waited for her girlfriend to do the first step back to their room.   
Squeezing the blonde’s hand and with Don coming down the hall, looking up at them, Sara made her first step.   
“Morning beauties.”   
“Hey Don Juan.” Sara smiled.   
“Don’t say another word, I smell thunder in paradise. Are you about to get the deep blue sky back?”  
“Yes.” Sofia smiled Don. “We will.”  
“Good. Sara, I’ll have breakfast now and after that we can walk the dogs. If your idiot brother comes around we’ll kick his ass right into jail.”  
“Thanks Don.”  
“You’re welcome, Honey. Go and talk.”  
Hand in hand they walked back to their room and sat on the edge of their bed.   
“My foot hurts where the prosthesis and the leg meet.” Sofia started. “I don’t know what it is, I couldn’t bear to look at it. Don’t look, don’t think about it and it will go away. Not a smart tactic, I know. The first time I realized the pain wasn’t a phantom pain was yesterday afternoon. Nothing bad, only uncomfortable. I thought maybe the prosthesis got out of place and when I put it on today everything will be fine.”  
“It isn’t.”  
“No.”  
“In how much pain are you?”  
“I didn’t take any additional painkiller. It hurts when I walk and my weight is on the left leg.” The blonde got up, opened her pants, dropped them down and pulled her left leg out of it. Forcing herself not to look away she started to put off her prosthesis. She knew what to do, could do it without looking at it. Most times she looked somewhere else, when she made a mistake, she felt it immediately.   
“Do you really want to see it?”  
Sara pulled her lover in her arms, kissed her. “Are you really okay with showing it to me?”  
“You know my leg, you see me naked every day.”  
“In spite of it you feel uncomfortable when you show your leg, your injury, to me.”  
“To anybody and myself.”  
“Sofia, it’s your decision. If you don’t want anybody to see your leg, I’ll accept it.”  
“You shouldn’t support stupidity.” Slowly she laid back and lifted her leg. For herself it was impossible to see all of her stump without a mirror.   
Softly Sara supported the leg with her hands, stroke over it. “Can you point out with your finger where the pain comes from?”  
“Here, this area.” When Sofia’s hand touched a part of her skin she flinched. Pain. Yes, this was the place where the pain came from.   
“I’m not a doctor but to me it looks like an infection, your skin is darker there, a mix between deep red and blackish.”  
“Bugger. I made it this long without an infection.”  
“Maybe it’s a small one. Talk to your doctor and maybe they can solve it out within no time.”  
“I call him later and ask for an appointment.”  
“Or I ask doctor Bendler to have a look. You’re her special patient and when you pick me up tonight, you see her anyway. Give her a call, you have her number, say your leg hurts, it looks like an infection, if she can squeeze you in or if you should call your physician.”  
“I’ll do it now. And then I go and catch a kidnapper before any more babies disappear.” She pulled Sara in her arms. “I love you and having you here with me makes me the happiest person on this planet.”  
“Impossible. You make me the happiest person on this planet.” And when their lips met they knew they were fine. 

“You let me know if your brother shows up and I take care of it, okay?” Don took Sara’s hand. He walked with her and the dogs around the reservoir and drove them over to Jules’s place afterwards. When they left their home Sam or his car weren’t around and Don checked on their way if somebody followed them.   
“I will.”  
“Promise?”  
“You’re as bad as Sofia.”  
“That’s a compliment and I take it as an approval. Enjoy your time with Jules.”  
“Won’t you come in and say hello?”  
“No, it’s early, she might be still in her sleep shirt and I’m not sure she wants me to see her this way. I come around tonight and pick you up.”  
“There’s a sexy blonde who’ll pick me up.”  
“Bugger.”  
“Come around and say hello if you want.”  
“I will. Give me a call if you want me to bring some dinner. Aren’t pregnant women always hungry? She was when she was over at our place the last time.”  
“It’s worse now. You can bring whatever you want, she’ll eat it.” Sara grinned.   
“Easy to please, that’s seldom with a woman. See you later.”  
“Later detective and stay safe, will you?”  
“Of course.” He hugged her before she left the car and got the dogs out. Rolling her eyes because he stayed in front of the house until she opened the door, she got her keys out and opened the door.   
“Morning!”  
“Morning. Bedroom.”  
“Do you need something from the kitchen?”  
“No, thanks.”   
“Oh.” Surprised walked upstairs. No food? The dogs ran ahead and were already in the bedroom, greeting Jules.   
“Hey, how are you?”  
“Miserable.” Jules sat on her bed. Next to it was the answer of Sara’s question about the food. A full breakfast was on the nightstand.   
“Do you need a doctor?” Alert the brunette was about to get her cell phone.  
“No. I need a time machine to be in labor and have your godchild in my arms.”  
“Worse than yesterday?”  
“Yesterday I could get up and walk around a few steps. Today I can hardly get up, make it to the bathroom and that’s it.”  
“Maybe your mom is right…” Sara sat on the edge of the bed, ready to jump off in case Jules slapped her for telling her, her mother was right.   
“What? That I should go into a hospital and wait there? Or about cutting them out?”  
“Both…although I wouldn’t call it ‘cut them out’." That sounded like Jules or the twins would get hurt, like they were injured. Okay, when you looked at it this way, every operation was a kind of injury because your body was cut or treated with medical tools somehow. But most times this little injury was better than your stage before the operation. "You suffer, Jules.”  
“When they’re ready, they’ll come.”   
“What would your therapist say about this?”   
“He’s a man, he has no idea about being pregnant.”  
“Like you have no idea about PTSB because you don’t suffer from it?”  
“You spend too much time with my mother.”  
“Hopefully I’ll spend some time with her today, will she come over tonight?”  
“Of course. Why?”  
“Sofia is in pain, it looks like there’s an infection on her stump, she refuses to see her physician today, too much work to do and I hope your mom has a look at her when they meet here tonight.”  
“She’ll order her to come to Hollywood Palms, have a day or two off.” Jules took Sara’s hand. “How bad does it look?”  
“It looks like it’s painful when weight is on it. Being on the scene the whole day, she puts pressure on it all the time. Nevertheless I couldn’t talk her into seeing her physician first. These baby cases are on her mind.”  
“Same with Greg, he gets crazy and worries about me all the time. Today is better, he knows you’re here.”  
“I make sure you’re all right and when the babies want to come out, I take you to hospital and stay until he’s there.”  
“Thanks. Did you hear anything of Sam?”  
“No. Don and me walked around the reservoir, came here and there was no sign of Sam. I don’t think he left, he’ll be back soon. For whatever reason he’ll try to talk to me again. Do you think I should ask him the next time what exactly he wants?”  
“What can you lose when you ask?”  
“Nothing. Beside the fact he might think I’m interested in talking to him.”  
“He knows you don’t want to talk to him and he keeps coming back. There must be a reason for it.”  
“His present make me feel uncomfortable, I hate being alone with him. No, I hate having him around, no matter if I’m alone or not. He reminds me of my childhood, of all the bad things and the fact, he wasn't there when I needed help, didn't help me.”  
“Do you want somebody with you when you talk to him? In case you talk to him.”  
“Yes and no. Yes, it would make me feel more comfortable, safer. No, it makes me look weak and scared and I don’t want him to think, I’m scared of him, need protection. I’m not a victim anymore, shouldn’t act like one and…it’s complicated and shit. Sorry babies.”  
“The next time he stands in front of the house and you come home with Sofia or Don, ask him what he wants, he should tell you right on the street. This way you have your back-up with you without looking week. If he asks Sofia to go inside, tell him you don’t have any secrets from her. Make it obvious to him, you have a new life and he can’t make the rules. Or let him give you his number and tell him, you’ll call him when you want to talk to him.”  
“He won’t wait, he came back from Seattle. Do you think he’ll leave after he talked to me?”  
“Difficult to say, depends on what he has to tell you, what he expects you to do.”  
“Family sucks!”   
“No, it doesn’t. Not all family. You’ve nice parents-in-law and your godchild family is nice too.”  
“Yeah…you, my baby brother and Alison. Sounds strange to call doctor Bendler Alison.”  
“You’ll get used to it.”  
“Probably…and I’ll be grateful forever. Without her I had never met you.”  
“She knew you needed the best – and I needed Greg.”  
“How did she talk you into taking me as your new patient? All your spots were taken.”  
“She said, there is a real challenge and if you work with her and succeed I believe in your kind of medicine.”  
“Hocus-pocus.” Sara grinned.   
“Science.” Jules grumbled.   
“Don’t pout, when you do the hocus-pocus I like it. You’re a great magician.” She pulled the pregnant woman in her arms and placed a sloppy kiss on her cheek. Having Jules in her life made a lot of things easier and possible. 

No news on Molly and Trevor. All the AMBER alerts didn’t give them the tips they hoped for. Nobody saw the doctor and the baby and nobody saw where the black van drove to, nor had the license plate. All they had was a vague description of the doctor and a perfect description of the mowing machine.   
“Over a thousand of these machines were sold within Los Angeles in the last four weeks.” Greg had a list in his hands. “Not surprisingly almost all credit cards belong to men. From the description of the doctor our suspect is in his thirties or early forties, Caucasian according to the security camera in Hollywood Palms, Hispanic from the neighbor.”  
“I trust the camera more, the neighbor wasn’t interested in the men, only the mowing machine.”  
“True.”  
“What about the second man? Did the mowing machine fan come up with anything about the second gardener?”  
“No. A man, same appearance like the other. Maybe. He isn’t sure.”  
“Just the kind of eye witness that can blow a whole case.” The blonde rolled her eyes. She hated these witnesses when she was a cop. They changed their statement every time, were never sure of what they said and saw and when you let them into court, all the time they were the perfect witness for the defense. “What about her parents?”  
“They’re in shock. The mother blames herself the whole time, says, it’s her fault. She left her baby alone, is a bad mother.”  
“Can’t blame her for thinking it even when it’s not true. Whoever took Trevor watched the Hendersons for a while, found out what they do, when they do it, how to get access. Yesterday was the perfect morning, it was sunny, warm, the kind of morning you leave the door to the garden ajar so your baby gets some fresh air. Your house, your garden, save places. With the neighbors away the perfect opportunity for the kidnapper to get the baby.”  
“Tell it a mother who blames herself, you can’t get through. If I leave the twins alone in the living for a minute and they were gone, I’d blame nobody else then myself…do you think Sara is with Jules now?”  
“Yes. Don wanted to get here and the dogs there. Your fiancé and your babies have a bodyguard while Sara has her therapist.”  
“Therapist? What did happen?” When Sofia called Jules a therapist, there was a reason, not a good one, for it.   
“Sam is back.”  
“Oh shit.”  
“Yes. Out of the blue he stood n front of our house yesterday. Wants to talk to her. Again. Tony used his TV gun to chase him away.”  
“He is still here.”  
“Highly likely.”  
“Sanders, Curtis, I’ve got something you might want to see.” Detective Guillyard entered the room.   
“What’s up, detective? Do you have a suspect in custody?”  
“I wish, I wish. No, we might have an explanation why these two babies were kidnapped.”  
“Ransom?” So far Sofia wasn’t aware of a ransom request. Neither the Whitemeyers nor the Hendersons were contacted in any way about their babies.  
“No, may I?” Detective Guillyard sat on the computer and opened a web page. Everything was written in Chinese or Japanese, they weren’t quite sure and there were photos of babies and toddler. All dressed, which was a relief, so it wasn’t about porn.   
“What kind of page is this, Jess?” Sofia asked. “I can’t read this language.”  
“It’s Chinese and they offer babies.”  
“Baby selling?”   
“Yes. There is a high demand on babies on the market, from new born to a month. The younger, the better. Rich families order them and pretend, they are their children.”  
“When my neighbor suddenly has a baby I’d be suspicious.”   
“The delivery of the perfect baby takes some time, they make sure you get exactly what you want. This gives you enough time to prepare. Carry a pillow under our shirt, make your neighbors and family believe you’re pregnant. When you get the destination to pick up your baby, you vanish for a few days, ‘give birth in a special hospital’ and come back with your baby. When you’re away for two or three weeks nobody is suspicious when you come back with a baby. You can’t guess the exact age by a look in the buggy.”  
“You think these men take the babies away and sell them to rich families? In China?”  
“All around the world. They call themselves ‘adoption help’ but there are a lot of hints, they kidnap babies, get them new papers and sell them. You make some really good money this way. They pay up to a million dollars for the perfect baby.”  
“And we can’t arrest them?”  
“This side is in China, we can’t get them and we have no idea who are the contact men. Interpol works this case, they cooperate with various other law enforcement groups, like the FBI and CIA but so far, the men in the States couldn’t be arrested.”  
“Is LAPD only investigating in this direction? Do you rule out a ransom kidnapping?”  
“We don’t rule out anything. Ransom becomes more and more unlikely with every hour we don’t hear from the kidnapper. Fortunately we couldn’t find any bodies of babies, which makes us hope, they’re still alive. And the child porn section has their photos, will notify us in case they find something out.”  
“Swing- and nightshift work these cases too. We want to get out again, have another look around, ask a few more questions. Traffic cameras get checked, there are a lot of private street cameras, we work on them too. The problem is, when you know where these cameras are, you can avoid them. I checked it out this morning, I can leave from the neighbor house the city without being on camera. Side roads, unsealed roads, it’s possible. Once you’re out of town it’s impossible to check on the highway cameras to find the black van. We have nothing of the license plate, we don’t know which direction they took off.” So frustrating. Sofia hated it when they ended up in a dead end.   
“The parents are at home, you can talk to them if you want. Although I think they can’t give you anything new.”  
“No.”  
“Vegas team, new case!” The voice of their boss came down the hallway. When they worked together, they were only ‘Vegas team’.   
“Why do we get all the new cases? Can’t they let us work the one we have? Or two.” Greg complained.   
“Each shift has a team for the baby cases, we’re the team of dayshift.” Which got Sofia to the conclusion another baby was missing. The kidnapper were busy, didn’t leave them any time to work evidence, made it harder to catch them. 

Lake Hollywood, a reservoir located in the Hollywood Hills, held 2.5 billion gallon of water and was like a little holiday destination close to Hollywood. Active people loved it for jogging, hiking and walking, tourists got a great view of the Hollywood Sign from here. Swimming wasn’t allowed and also boats were prohibited. Sofia had been here a couple of times to walk her dogs and enjoy the silence.   
“I’ve never been here.” Greg looked out of the window.   
“It’s a nice place for a Sunday afternoon trip.”  
“How many reservoirs are there in Los Angeles?”  
“The Stone Canyon reservoir and Franklin Canyon reservoir are west of here, there are various reservoirs in the east. This one is perfect for hiking and quiet nights out. We should go here in spring with the twins.”  
“On a crime scene with the babies?”   
Yes, the Hollywood reservoir was their new crime scene. On the north side of Lake Hollywood, south of Lake Hollywood Drive, was their destiny. Before she saw the detective of the case she saw the car and knew, who was waiting for her: Don. This meant, their scene today was a scene of a kidnapping with a body.   
“Detective Flack, I hoped I don’t see you on my scene while I work these cases.” She greeted him.   
“Sorry, I also hoped not to call you, LT. Greg, Sara is with Jules, no need to worry, she’s fine and not alone. I waited until Sara and the dogs were in the house before I left.”  
“Thanks.” Greg had been in a constant fight with himself after they got the call. He worried about Jules, wanted to warn her and at the same time, didn’t want to scare her. His fiancé was at home, in their house, with company. No need to worry all the time.   
“What do you have?” Sofia pointed towards the coroner who kneed next to a dead body. Cherry, she had worked with her several cases when she was a cop.   
“A walker found the body of a dead woman an hour ago. First it looked like a brutal stabbing attack.”  
“And then?”  
“Then it turned out the woman was pregnant.”   
“Shit.”   
“I go and have a look around if there are any people in this area, walker, who have seen her before. The next house is half a mile away, we can’t hope for neighbors.”  
“Okay.” Taking a deep breath the two CSI walked to the coroner. “Good morning Cherry.”   
“Former LT Curtis, now CSI, welcome back to one of my scenes. I was wondering how long it will take before we meet again. How are you?”  
“Better than she is.”  
“Yes, poor woman.”  
“Can you tell us something about her?”  
“Late twenties, Caucasian, died due the loss of blood.”  
“And the baby?”  
“Can’t tell you anything about people I don’t see.”  
“What do you mean? I thought this is a scene with a baby.”   
“Well, this woman has been pregnant, I can tell you that. But I can’t tell you how old the unborn child was. It’s gone.”  
“Gone?” How could a child be gone? An unborn child.   
“Whoever killed her, cut the baby out of her womb. Due to this she lost a lot of blood and died. I can’t tell you if the child survived but when I look at the way she was cut, it looks like medical tools were used and I guess the killer knew what he or she was doing. No other body is found, the child can be alive.”  
“In these cases the babies die most times because the attacker doesn’t know what he or she does, injures the baby and it bleeds to death.”  
“I can tell you more about it after the examination. Take various blood example, if the baby was injured, we will find its blood. If the killer cut himself/herself, we’ll find their blood. I take this poor woman with me after you’re done.”  
“Thanks. Greg? Do you want to work the body or the surroundings?”  
“Surroundings.” He was pale and Sofia didn’t have to be a psychic to know where his thoughts were. Jules. It could have been Jules. Walking around, being attacked and killed. It was written all over his face.   
“Okay.” She started to take a few photos, took samples from blood, little fibers from clothes. The women wore sweat pans and a thick jersey. Everything was covered in blood.   
Taking her cell phone out of her pocket she typed a short message to Sara: got a dead woman, somebody cut out her unborn baby. Greg is scared to death, make sure Jules isn’t alone and sends him message so he can relax. Not a nice scene. Tell you more later. Love you.  
When Greg received a text from Jules she was fine and with Sara at home, he would be more relaxed. And Sara had a text, knew it could be later today and didn’t worry. Well, she wouldn’t like Sofia being late. If she wanted doctor Bendler to look after her leg – which was in pain and she needed another pain killer soon. But first she had to work before she concentrated on herself.   
The body was twenty yards away from the streets, half hidden behind a bush. If the woman walked on the path and her attacker grabbed her, silenced her calls with his hands or chloroform like he did with the babies, he could have pulled her to here, placed her on the ground and cut out the baby. Assuming the baby was alive this man knew what he did. He had to be a doctor or worked in the medical area. Sofia wasn’t sure how much training you needed to know how to do a C-section, not too long ago she read about a woman who killed another woman by cutting out the baby with a C-section, she had seen on Discovery Channel before. If their attacker had been a doctor once, or tried to be a doctor, went through medical school and learnt those things, it was likely the baby was alive. And it could help them to find him. Or them.   
The demand on babies was big. But when they ordered babies, ordered what sex, what hair color, eye color or any other preferences the people had, how could you be sure you get the right baby, when you never saw it? And couldn’t the eye color change within the first months? She needed an update on the development of babies and the demand of babies on the black market. 

“Gosh, this trip felt like an around the world trip.” Jules dropped on the sofa. Walking was a problem, walking down the stairs felt like a boot camp workout. The thought of the way back, up the stairs, was pushed far, far away.   
“You wanted to get out of your bed and downstairs.”  
“I did and I want to get out of the house too. Even if it’s only in the garden to get some air and sunshine. Yesterday I stayed in bed, if I have to the same today, I get crazy. Plus we’re closer to the ice cream here. What do you think? Shall we have ice cream and fruits as a snack?”  
“You can have ice cream, I take an apple.”  
“Apple? Boring. Can you have a look into the cupboard over there? There should be chocolate sauce.”  
“Chocolate sauce, ice cream, do you want a cookie as well?”  
“Oh yes!” Jules grinned. “Being pregnant can be fun. You get all the sweet stuff and blame it on your babies.”  
“If you have somebody who can bring all the sweets to you because you’re not able to reach them yourself. Or get up alone, walk down the stairs…”  
“Will you stop it? I try to be positive, which is good for your godchild.”  
“You try to get chocolate, don’t try to tell me anything else, I’ve a chocoholic myself at home. The signs are the same.” The doorbell rang.   
“Ten o’clock postman? I don’t expect any visitors.” Jules tried to get up.   
“Sit down, I go. Scooby, Rantanplan, come on, we have a look who is there.”   
“Thanks James.”  
Sara slapped playfully Jules’s backside of her head and walked with the dogs to the door. There was a reason why she took the dogs with her. Sofia’s message made her swallow a few times and she spared Jules the details, just told her, to send her fiancé a message. The kidnapper weren’t kidnapper anymore, they became killer and in case one of them stood in front of the door, Sara wanted the dogs by her side. Same for Sam, in case her brother followed her.   
A woman waited in front of the door. Sara guessed her in her late twenties to early thirties with Mexican roots.   
“Hey…uhm…I’m looking for Jules…Weinberg…”  
“And you are?”  
“Her cousin, Tanya. She doesn’t expect me, it’s a surprise visit. Is this the right house?”  
“Yes.”  
“Is she…don’t tell me she’s in hospital and the twins are there already. Are they all fine? She didn’t feel too good the last days, we talked on the phone three days ago when she was preparing for this girl’s night.”  
“She’s in the kitchen, come in.” This woman knew a lot of details, more than Sara expected anybody to find out by spying on a stranger. If this woman wasn’t the one she told her she is, Sara had her weapon with her. The ankle weapon, like her lover sometimes did. With Sam around, she felt safer this way.   
“Wow, you are fat!”   
“What the…Tanya!” Jules tried to get up, got help from the other woman and hugged her. Seemed like the story Tanya told Sara was the truth.   
“You should stop eating, you look like an elephant. With how many children are you pregnant? A whole soccer team?”  
“Twins.”  
“Twins…are they big enough to go to high school?”  
“Will you stop it? Sara, why did you let her in?”   
“Uhm…she said she’s your cousin.”  
“She is. A horrible person.” Jules pulled her cousin in her arms and kissed her cheeks. “Good to see you. How are you? Where’s Manuel?”  
“Manuel is in Santa Barbara and I’m fine.”  
“In Santa Barbara? You’re on holidays alone? Oh, before I forget: Sara, Tanya my cousin, Tanya, Sara, the reason why I look like an elephant.”  
“No, for this belly is a man responsible, Sara doesn’t look like a guy. You told me about Greg, will I meet him?”  
“Depends on how long you stay.”  
“How long do you want me to stay?”  
“As long as you want…don’t you have to work?”  
“No.”  
“And Manuel is fine with you here?”  
“He doesn’t care, we’re getting divorced.”  
“I beg your pardon?”  
“He filed for a divorce last week, we’re separated since four months.”  
“You never told me!”  
“I tell you now.”  
“Why? What happened?”  
“Maybe I should take the dogs out for a walk.” Sara said carefully. She didn’t feel comfortable listen to a private story of a woman she didn’t know. A divorce wasn’t a story with nice words and mostly very private.   
Jules looked at her. “Come here.”  
“Why?”  
“She doesn’t trust you, Jules.” Tanya grinned. “Good choice.”  
“Go and get your bag inside, I’m sure you didn’t come here without a bag, Tanya. Sara, please.”  
Slowly Sara walked to Jules and got pulled in her arms.   
“Promise you come back after your walk.”  
“Your cousin is here, no need for me to be here too. I’m sure you have a lot of things to talk about.”  
“You promised Greg you’ll take care of me. And I want you around. Please. If you want to take the dogs out, it’s okay, but be back in an hour. To stay with me, to let me know you’re fine and Sam didn’t appear. Please.”  
“Okay.” Sara sighed. How was she supposed to deny a wish of a pregnant woman? The mother of her future godchild.   
“Thanks.” Jules kissed her. “We have a deal, you take care of me and I take care of you. Nothing has changed. And Tanya doesn’t want you away.”  
“Your cousin seems to be nicer than your doctor girlfriends.”  
“She’s a pain in the ass, you’ll like her.”   
“Sounds good. Shall I get some lunch?”  
“Yeah. Something vegetarian, she’s a vegetarian too.”  
“I like her already more. See you later.”  
“You will when you come back. If not, I’ve to come to your place and get you back. Your godchild doesn’t like trips, doesn’t feel good in a car.”  
“I’ll be back. Promise.”  
“See you soon, Sara. Don’t let me too long alone with Jules.” Tanya dropped a bag on the floor and waited until Sara was gone. “She was your patient, wasn’t she?”  
“Why?”  
“Because you said, you met Greg when he took his friend home from therapy. Sara.”  
“Are you about to tell me I break rules, Tanya? Because I heard that all before and don’t need another lecture.”  
“I don’t lecture you. Who am I to tell you, you did something wrong? To me it looks like you are good for each other, like having you gives Sara strength and you need her to. I’m not quite sure in which way, but I’ll work that out. Rules are important, sometimes it’s important to break them. Did she find somebody who’s almost as good as you?”  
“Amanda.”  
“Oh, okay. The über-shrink.”  
“Do me a favor, don’t tell Sara you and Amanda aren’t best friends. Be nice to my cousin, you’ll meet her sooner or later.”  
“Better later. I’m glad she’s your cousin and not mine. Old and boring woman.”  
“Stop it! One day the two of you grow up and put an end to your bitching around. Amanda isn’t boring and you have something in common.”  
“The divorce. And you as our cousin. Nothing else.”  
“It’s a start for a friendly conversation – one day.”  
“Lucky for me today is Wednesday and not one day.”

“There are various traces of people around. I found at least a dozen shoe prints, cigarette butts, chewing gum paper, chewing gums, empty coke cans and beer bottles.” Greg came back to Sofia, who was taking samples from the area where the body was found. The body was gone, taken to the morgue.   
“Did you find the place where she was attacked?”  
“Over there. She was dragged here, drag marks indicate her heels were in the ground, tried to stop the dragging or she was unconscious.”  
“Did you find a tissue with chloroform?”  
“No, not yet. Officers check the garbage cans in an one mile radius.”  
“Any shoeprints that are likely to belong to the attacker?”  
“Some marks, the problem is, this guy isn’t stupid, he knew he left marks and covered his tracks. I can tell it was him but I can’t say exactly which size he has or what kind of shoes. I took two prints, will have a closer look at them in the lab. What did you find on the body?”  
“Two hairs that doesn’t look like they belong to the victim, fibers, I scratched traces from under her nails, if we’re lucky she got her attacker and we have his DNA.”  
“He just cut out the baby…do you think it’s still alive?”  
“I don’t know. Can be. So far these guys appeared to be very professional, didn’t make big mistakes and seemed to have a very solid plan. The thing is, when you make a C-section here, the baby must cry at one point. Why did nobody hear it?”  
“It’s a remote area, during the week in the morning, there are not too many people around. Not like Silver Lake reservoir.”  
“A risk. Unless he knew nobody was around. Means there were at least two people with him, making sure nobody came along.”  
“If he is a part of this baby web page, he’ll have a few accomplishes…I always thought they’d steal the babies in other places…you know, poor countries…”  
“You don’t get white skinned babies with blonde hair in Africa or Asia. And when your client is from L.A. it’s easy to kidnap the baby and deliver it the same day to the new parents.”  
“No, I don’t think the babies will be sold to people in L.A., they’re all over the news, all TV stations showed photos of Trevor and Molly. People here know them.”  
“Wait two weeks and they forgot them, but you’re right, they’re likely somewhere else. Well, not this one.”  
“No, not this one. If it survived, nobody knows how it looked. It could be with the new parents already.” Was that the reason why they kidnapped a baby out of the body of the mother? So there were no photos of it? No DNA profile.   
“When I think of Jules…I don’t want her leave the house anymore. Not alone.”  
“Sara is with her.”  
“Sara and her cousin Tanya. Jules sent me a text a few minutes ago, we have a visitor, her cousin from Santa Barbara and she’ll stay for a few days if I agree.”  
“Of course you do.”  
“Absolutely! With Tanya around I know Jules isn’t alone when Sara is back at work tomorrow. She can stay as long as she wants.”  
“Have you met her before?”  
“No. All I know she’s Jules’s favorite cousin, they’re around the same age and very close. Talk on the phone at least twice a week for an hour or longer and used to see each other once a month. I don’t know why they didn’t meet the last months, okay we were busy, maybe so was Tanya. We’ll see tonight. Oh and I’m supposed to tell you, Alison waits for you at six, don’t let her wait too long. Are you having any trouble with your prosthesis?”  
“No, the prosthesis is fine.” Not a complete lie. Nothing was wrong with her prosthesis, it was this infection.   
“Why does she want to see you? What’s wrong, Sofia?”  
“There might be an infection at my stump and Sara wants your mother-in-law to have a look, she worries.”  
“Are you in pain?”  
Sofia sighed. “Yes. But it’s okay, I took some pills.”  
“You leave at half past five to be there on time!”  
“Greg, we’ve a case here…”  
“No discussion. I’m the leading CSI and if you don’t want me to call our boss and tell him about the infection, you go home on time, let Alison check on you and do whatever she wants you to do. The longer you wait, the worse it gets. You help us more when you’re away for a few hours than a whole week.”  
“I won’t stay away for a whole week!”  
“When Alison says you have to, you will.”  
“Can we focus on the case, please?”  
“Sure. It doesn’t change the fact you’ll leave to see her on time. Are you done with the scene here?”  
“No, I want to take a few more samples. What about you?”  
“I want to walk around, have a look for the chloroform tissue, see if I can find the place where he waited for the victim. You didn’t find an I.D.?”  
“No. No I.D., no key, no wallet.”  
“Tells me, she didn’t live too far away. Don wanted to bang on some doors, talk to the next neighbors if they know a pregnant woman. First I’ve a look at the road. I’m sure they had a car and didn’t carry the baby somewhere.”  
“Maybe you can find some oil or skid marks.”  
“Anything will help. I want these bastards behind bars before they destroy more lives. They’re killer now. Not only kidnapper, they kill to get what they want. We have to get them off the streets!”

“I’m glad you came back.” Jules pulled Sara in her arms. She sat on a lounger in front of the house, a thick woolen blanket over her and a glass of juice next to her. A second lounger told Sara Tanya wasn’t too far away. But away. Something Greg wouldn’t like.   
“Didn’t I promise to come back?”  
“You did. Nevertheless you could have changed your mind or make a really long walk.”  
“One hour and with lunch. Where’s your cousin? Don’t tell me she left you.”  
“No, she’s in the bathroom. Nobody steals a big fat woman within a minute from here. The neighbors two doors down are in their garden, I’m safe here.”  
“Why here and not behind the house?”  
“Here’s the sunshine, there’s shadow. Why are you so…afraid something could happen to me? It’s not only because Greg’s going nuts, is it? What do you know what I don’t know?”  
“Nothing, you’re the doctor, you’re the smart one.”  
“Bullshit. Leave the dogs and food with me, get yourself a lounger, we can have lunch here in the sunshine. Blankets are in the living room.”  
“Okay.” This was too easy, Sara knew it. The Jules she knew didn’t let go of a topic this easily.   
Coming back with the lounger, a blanket and a bottle of water she found the two other woman enjoying the sunshine on their faces. Placing her lounger next to Jules, the therapist pulled it closer to hers.   
“She really likes you.” Tanya commented with a smirk.   
“I love her.” Taking Sara’s hand Jules squeezed it. “Especially because Sara wants to tell me why I’m not supposed to sit here in front of the house in the sunshine. What did my fiancé tell you and not me?”  
“Nothing.” This wasn't a lie, it was Sofia who told her about the dead woman and not Greg.   
“You’re not supposed to lie to your friend, Sara.”  
“When she promised Greg not to tell you she can’t break her promise.” Tanya supported Sara. “You’re not her therapist, she’s allowed to have secrets. At one point you’ve to learn to let people have secrets from you, Jules.”  
“Shut up, Tanya.”   
“Ignore her, Sara. Shrinky has to learn to be like an ordinary human.”  
“You’re not welcome anymore, pack your things and leave!”  
“If you want, we have a spare room for you.” Sara offered with a smirk. Shrinky? Why weren’t Jules’s friend not more like her cousin? She liked Tanya already, she wasn’t snobby, she didn’t look down on Sara nor did she treat her like something was wrong with her. There should be more Tanyas around Jules and less girls night women.   
“Thanks. People from L.A. can be nice.”  
“I’m not originally from L.A. and Jules is nice too. Most times. Shrink or not.”  
“This woman is a dentist, Sara, aren’t they worse than psychologists?”  
“A dentist? Are there any normal family members? Like not any kind of doctor?”  
“No…only married into the family members who aren’t doctors. A few.”  
“Poor Greg.”  
“He is fine. So, why am I not supposed to sit here? Why do you ask where Tanya is? What happened? They work the baby kidnapper case, what new details do you know that are hold back from me? Tell me, I’ll find out anyway when I turn on the TV or read the newspaper. You tell me now, make me under-stand and I might go back inside or stay under surveillance like a criminal.”  
“You’re the pain in the ass, not your cousin.”  
“She called me that?” Tanya eyed Jules.  
“You are a pain in the ass.”  
“From today on you’re not my favorite cousin anymore.”  
“Good, so I won’t ask you if you want to be the godmother of one twin.”  
“I am so going to be the godmother, Jules. You promised me years ago I'll be the godmother of your child. Who is the other one?”  
“Sara.”  
“We’ll make sure the kids are all right, Sara. Not shrinky.”  
“Careful what you say, Sara. You better tell me what you’re hiding.”  
“They’ve a new case.” Jules was right, when she turned on the TV she saw why they worried about her sitting alone in front of the house. There was no point in not telling her.   
“I’m aware of that.”  
“This time the baby was kidnapped out…out of the mother. They killed a pregnant woman, cut out the baby and left the mother back to die. Greg worries the same might happen to you. These men aren’t far away from us, Jules, they could have come past your house. That’s why you are not supposed to be out alone, why he worries so much. These men are not only kidnapper, they’re killer.”  
Jules’s face became pale. “Seriously?”  
“It’s not a topic to joke about. They spy on pregnant woman and don’t hesitate to kill if they have to. That’s why Greg worries so much and doesn’t want you alone anywhere. So far we don’t have a case in Silver Lake, but from here to Hollywood Palms it’s a twenty minutes drive, they can be here.” Did she say ‘we’? She meant they, of course. These cases weren’t her cases, she wasn’t a CSI anymore.   
“You managed to scare me, Sara.”  
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you while at the same time I want you to be cautious. Sofia didn’t give me any details of the case, I can’t tell you more. Only to stay inside, don’t open the door to stranger and stay with somebody. These men don’t want to be seen, if they have an eye on you, they’ll wait until you’re alone. It doesn’t have to be a long time, Trevor was for two minutes alone in the living room and was gone when his mother came down.”  
“You’ve persuade me, I stay inside when I’m alone.”  
“Alone? You won’t be alone until you give birth, my dear cousin.” Tanya said. “My plan was to have a look for an apartment and a new job from tomorrow on, this plan just got renewed. I stay with you when nobody is around and will look for everything later. There’s no way you’ll be alone at home. The way I understood Sara, these men have no problem getting into a building. The twins and you will be under surveillance from now on. Like it or not.”  
“I don’t argue anymore. Who gets me to the toilet? I made fifteen minutes without a trip to the bathroom, time to go there again. And then we stay inside, no need to show them how pregnant I am.”  
“We get you inside and while you’re in the bathroom we get the lounger inside. Sara?”  
“Good idea.” Together they pulled Jules on her feet and helped her walk back into the house. 

Against her will Sofia had left the crime scene and drove to Jules’s place. Greg threatened to call their boss if she dared to stay away and/or not see doctor Bendler today. Plus the doctor herself would be mad the next time they met. It was better to go today, get it over and be back at work tomorrow.   
“Hey.” Sara hugged and kissed her girlfriend when she opened the door and saw her there. “I missed you.” Not willing to let go, she kept Sofia in her arms and pulled her closer. “How are you?”  
“Okay. Are you all right too?”  
“Yes.”  
“Anything happened today? Did you see Sam?”  
“No, the only unexpected visitor we had is Jules’s cousin Tanya.”  
“We don’t know her, do we?”  
“No. Unfortunately Jules tortured us with her stupid doctor friends instead of her cool cousin.”  
“Cool cousin? Do I have to be jealous?”  
“No…or…no…I don’t think so. She has Latin blood, her father is from Venezuela.”  
“You won’t not come here anymore as long as this woman is around! My girlfriend has a crush on somebody else! A hot Latin chick.”  
“Your girlfriend loves only you.” To proof her words Sara kissed her lover softly.  
“Jules, there’s a porn playing at your front door!”   
“It’s called love.” Sara laughed and let go of Sofia a bit. “Sofia, that’s Jules’s cousin Tanya from Santa Barbara. Tanya, that’s the most amazing and most beautiful woman in the world, my girlfriend Sofia.”  
“Hey, did you know that my girlfriend thinks you’re cool?” Sofia grinned.   
“Does she? Thanks Sara, I think you’re cool too. And much more fun to be with than the other friends Jules has here. Did you meet some of them? Those therapist bitches with sticks in their ass and more paint in their faces than brain in their heads?”  
Sara chuckled. That was a nice description of the women from the girl's night. “Unfortunately. The girls night three nights ago.”  
“Oh…I feel sorry for you. I had to meet them a few times on her birthdays. Awful. And Sofia, as far as I know, you’re the former lieutenant and now you take care of Jules’s fiancé.”  
“Yes. Our Greggo.”  
“Where is he?”  
“At work. We have a new case. It will take some time before he comes home.”  
“You’re lucky to get back home on time.”  
“No.” Sofia grumbled.  
“She needs to see your aunt. Doctor Bendler is here.”  
“Oh, a doctor appointment.”  
“Yeah.”  
“Tanya is a dentist, careful, she might want to give you an appointment too.”  
“Why are there no normal family members? Poor Greg.”  
“Every family has a tradition.”  
“Looks like.” Hand in hand they walked into the living room where Jules with her parents was.   
“Hey LT, let me hug you.”  
“Hey doc.” Sofia hugged Jules and kissed her cheek. “Good to see you. How do you feel?”  
“Like a balloon ready to burst.”  
“Let me know when I can see my babies.”  
“Your babies? You haven’t been pregnant with them for – like it feels – an eternity. They don’t kick your bladder all the time…which reminds me, I need to go to the bathroom; again. Maybe I need diapers.”  
“While you have to come with me.” Doctor Bendler looked at Sofia and rose. “Don’t you?”  
“I’m afraid so. Hello doctor Bendler…and doctor Bendler.” Both parents with a doctor title. How complicated. Mister and Mrs. doctor?   
“Hello Sofia, don’t let my wife push you around.”  
“No…I’m grateful she has a look after me, her shift ended a while ago.”  
“For my special patient I’m always on call. Come on, we go upstairs into the master bedroom and have a look at your leg. Do you need your girlfriend with you?”  
“I always need her – but I spare her this.”  
“It’s not a problem, I can come with you.” Sara offered.   
“No, it won’t be something nice to see.”  
“Honey, when I look into your eyes everything fades away.”  
“Yuck, they’re disgusting in love.”  
“Shut up, Tanya. Some people are happy and not divorced.” Doctor Bendler snubbed the dentist. “Come on Sofia, you take your lover and we go upstairs. I’m sure Sara is a good medicine for you.”  
“She’s the best, that’s why she was allowed around me when I was in coma.” Taking Sara’s hand they followed doctor Bendler upstairs into the master bedroom. Here a quite familiar suitcase waited for them: doctor Bendler’s medical kit.   
“How do you feel?”  
“A little bit in pain.” Sofia sat down and started to take off her pants.   
“How much pain killer did you take?”  
“Three.”  
“The limit for the day. Any other problems?”  
“No, only the leg.”  
“The prosthesis fits?”  
“Yes. It’s comfortable.”  
“When is your next appointment with the orthopedic?”  
“Next week.”  
“Let him check everything.”  
“Okay.” Carefully Sofia took off her prosthesis. A sharp pain followed by the feeling of fading pain made her take a deep breath. What a lovely feeling when the pain faded away   
Sara sat behind Sofia so the blonde could lean back and use her as a support and at the same time it gave Sara the chance, to hold her lover in her arms, be as close as possible.   
“Since when do you have this infection?” Doctor Bendler held the stump and took a closer look at the infection.   
“I need extra painkiller since yesterday. Before that I was fine with one pill a day.”  
“Your tolerate a high lever of pain, the way this looks to me, it has been painful a few days.”  
“Can you give me a few antibiotics and everything is fine?”  
“No. I need you to come to Hollywood Palms tomorrow morning. We can’t use a pill therapy in this case, I need to cut the infection out.”  
Sofia felt how she started to feel sick. Cut the infection out? “Can I continue to work?”  
“We’re talking about a surgical intervention, not a coffee break, Sofia. You’ll get a local anesthesia and for the next days you won’t be able to use your prosthesis. The best thing would be you stay on a sick leave for a few days, I want to check on you the day after tomorrow and then every two days for a week.”  
“I can come to you and use the crutches. Please, doctor Bendler. I have to work, the case…we are not dealing with kidnapper anymore. They killed a woman. Attacked her, probably used chloroform, cut her baby out of the womb and left her to die next to the street. I can’t stay at home, we need everybody to work the case and find them. Please.”  
“Can you work with crutches?”  
“Greg drives the car, I stay in the lab, whatever it takes.” Lab work was better than no work at all. Sofia knew, when she had to stay at home, it would drive her nuts. She felt already quite helpless after three missing babies and no real evidence, when she had to stay away, it would make her feel completely helpless.   
“Not more than eight hours. I want to see you before you go to work tomorrow and when the pain increases you come and see me before your girlfriend pushes you to me. understood?”  
“Yes. Thanks.”  
“Tomorrow you’ll come and see me at six in the morning …Sara, is this time all right for you? Sofia can't drive.”  
“I have to start at six and can bring Sofia to Hollywood Palms before I go to work.”  
“I can take a taxi.”  
“You take a taxi to the lab. And you stop working after eight hours. I let Greg know to have an eye on your time. If you don’t listen to him, I’ve to contact your boss and put you on a sick leave. Am I clear?”  
“Yes Ma’am.”  
“Good. Can you manage to stay for the rest of the day without your prosthesis? You don’t have your crutches here, but can you leave your leg like this? It will be less painful.”  
“Okay. I doubt I’ve to walk a lot.”  
“No, you sit down and relax, it’s dinner time.”  
“We can go home too.” Sara offered.   
“As far as I know you’re planned in for dinner. Tanya made some Mexican dish for eight people. When she says for eight people it’s enough for twelve.”  
“Why are there only doctors in your family?” Sofia cocked her head.   
“Because most of our family members can only handle doctors. It’s like with cops, you are so used to people, who are like you, that you have problems to integrate other people in your life. Try to explain a tradesman the hours you pull as a cop or CSI. They won’t understand why it’s important to work doubles.”  
“Greg isn’t a doctor.”  
“No, like Jules doesn’t have to work double shifts. She is her own boss, can make her own decision when to work and how long. She knows enough about doctors to understand the need of doubles and Greg is human enough to stop his work at a point, go home and enjoy his life as a family man. I’m sure he won’t work more overtime than he has to when the twins are there.”  
“My babies. I’ve to be fit to take them out for walks. What do you think, Sara? We take them out for a picnic at the reservoir when Jules and Greg need some time out. And when they don’t call we take them home and keep them.”  
“You try to steal my grandchildren and you’ll be in trouble.”  
“We shouldn’t argue with doc…Alison. She’s your doctor. And I’m sure she wants to have her grandchildren over too.”  
“Absolutely. When my son isn’t able to give me grandchildren I’ve to focus on the twins.”  
“We really have to work on a schedule who can have them when.” Sofia grinned. The way it looked, everybody wanted the twins around before they were born. Americas most wanted.   
“They’re Jules’s and Greg’s twins, they make the decision who can see them for how long.” Sara helped Sofia up and took the prosthesis. “You go downstairs and I drive home, feed the dogs, get your crutches and come back.”  
“Are you sure?”  
“Yes.”  
“I’m sure Sara can drive home and back.” Alison said. “You’re the one who shouldn’t drive the next few days.”  
“Sofia doesn’t doubt I can drive, she’s afraid my idiot brother waits for he. He was there yesterday.” Hey, she told Jules’s mother about Sam and that he was a problem. Maybe she did make progress.   
“He bothers you?”  
“A lawyer bothers everybody.”  
“A lawyer? Why don’t I come with you? If he’s around and bothers you, you do what you plan to do and I talk to your brother. Believe me, when I’m done with him, he won’t come back anymore.”  
“Sofia’s mother offered something similar, thanks. I’m a grown-up woman, I am in therapy, talked about this with my shrink for weeks, I can do this alone. If it makes you happy, you can come and rescue me if I’m not back within an hour.”  
“Thirty minutes.”  
“Honey, I’ll be fine.” Sara kissed Sofia. “You listen to your doctor, enjoy some time with our friends and I take care of our dogs and your crutches. Later, you’re allowed to thank me for that. I want a massage.”   
“Hurry, I worry until you’re back with me.” 

After she fed the dogs, Sara sent Sofia a message she’d take them out for a little walk and be back a little bit later. Sam hadn’t been around and the brunette felt quite comfortable to walk down to the reservoir and let the dogs run free to play with their four legged friends. This gave her also the chance to have some time for herself.   
An hour later she was back at Jules’s place and was happy to see Greg there.   
“Greggo!”   
“Hey big sis.” He pulled her in his arms. “Who allowed you to leave this place?”  
“I did myself. You look tired, you work too much.”  
“Like somebody we both know did when she was a CSI? There’s no time to take a break until the case is solved. But enough of work. Are you okay? Was Sam there?”  
“No, he wasn’t. Maybe Tony scared him away. It was the second time he looked into the barrel of a gun when he was over.”  
“If not, you call me and I help you out.”  
“Your mother-in-law wanted to do the same.”  
“Yeah, imagine her, furious talking with Sam. He’ll never come back afterwards.”  
“No more Sam for today, okay? I don’t want to think about him all the time.”  
“Deal. Lets get into the living room, dinner should be ready soon. Tanya made some Mexican food.”  
“Do you like her?”  
“She seems to be nice. What do you think?”  
“I like her more than Jules’s friends.”  
“Good, she’ll be the other godmother and stays for a few days. Looks like Tanya will move to L.A.”  
“Another babysitter.”  
“Yeah. I wonder if I’ll see my own children at one point.”  
“You’ll be the first one who’ll see them.”  
“And I’m so nervous.” He would be there, hold Jules’s hand, cut the umbilical cord. “I’m responsible for their belly buttons.”  
“You’ll make sure they’ve nice belly buttons.”  
“Will you be there?”  
“Where?” He didn't mean what she thought, did he? Please not!   
“In hospital. Not in the room, Jules told her mother a few times, she doesn’t want her in, only me, but in front of the door? For my support.”  
“Of course.” She kissed his cheek. If it was important to him to have her around, she’d be there. In front of the room, not inside.   
“Thanks.” With her in his arm he walked back into the living room. “Look who is back.”  
“We thought we have to get you back.” Jules smiled when she realized Sara was relaxed, so she hadn’t met Sam.   
“As long as Sofia is here I’ll come back.” She leant the crutches next to the couch, sat down and pulled her lover on her lap. “Dusty says hello.”  
“The most beautiful blue eyes in Los Angeles? Thanks. Everything all right at home?”  
“Yeah…there are half a dozen people in the living, practicing for a TV series. And did you know this guy who plays this action hero in this number one movie moved to Hollywood? I’ve his address now.”  
“You have his address but not his name nor do you know the name of the movie or the character he plays?” Sofia chuckled.   
“I think it was the guy who hit on you while when we were in Malibu. You remember, in the restaurant?”  
“Oh, Lou Lee.”  
“Lou Lee hit on you?” Tanya almost fainted. “This hottie? Where did you meet him? And why did you not make him yours?”  
“See this woman, who holds me tight? Compared to her, Lou Lee is absolutely boring.”  
“If there was a woman, who is as sexy as Lou Lee, I’d turn into a lesbian.”  
“I had my share of men but none made me as happy as Sara does. She’s my soul mate. No matter who you offer me, she’ll always be my pick.”  
“Sara, are you interested in Lou Lee?”  
“What am I supposed to do with him when I’ve my own hero of my heart? All those Hollywood stars can ring on my door, my pick is this lovely blonde. My queen of my heart.”  
“Means, you can give me his address?”  
“Tanya, can’t you wait until you’re divorced before you start dating again?” Jules sighed.   
“Do you have any idea how long a divorce can take? Who knows where Lou lives then. Sara?”  
“I write it down for you.”  
“Thanks. Are there any other interesting addresses you know of? Any other hot stars?”  
“Uhm…no…Honey?”  
“We talked to a few stars a couple of times when they take their dogs out to the dog park. Mostly TV stars. But I’ve no idea where they live.”  
“Okay, first an apartment, then a job and after that I need a dog to meet stars. Jules, I should have listened to you and move to L.A. a couple of years ago.”  
“Told you so.”  
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Santa Barbara has some really nice surfer.”  
“So does L.A.”   
“I’ll meet them all.”  
“What will your mother say when she hears you?” Doctor Bendler asked.   
“Aunt Alison, you won’t tell her, will you?”  
“She’s my sister. If Jules was in Santa Barbara and planed to jump every surfer before she’s divorced I’d want my sister to tell me so I can get my daughter, smack her backside and lock her in a dark basement for a month.”  
“Don’t you get a mental disease from things like this? Jules?”  
“In your case things can’t get worse.”  
“Bad mean favorite cousin.”  
“Greg, do we really want to have her around?” Jules placed her head on Greg’s shoulder and snuggled into his arms.   
“Yes, she’s funny. I like her. Are you okay with the office, Tanya?”  
“Sure. I hope it won’t be for too long anyway. Auntie, do you have an idea where they need dentists? Do you know of somebody, who is looking for a second dentist in his or her dental surgery?”  
“No. Bryan?” Doctor Bendler looked at her husband, who sat the whole time quiet on his chair and watched and listened to the people around him. Sara and Sofia had experienced him like this most times. Like Sofia’s father, he seemed to be the quieter part of the parents.   
“I can ask around. You don’t want your own dental surgery?”  
“Not now. I’ve to find out if I really like L.A.”  
“Fair enough.”  
“Believe me, once you’re here, you’ll soon find a reason why you have to stay. It happened to me too.” Sara smiled and squeezed Sofia’s hand. Her reason to stay in L.A. wasn’t the weather, the job or the city. Her reason was Sofia. But wasn’t her lover the best reason for everything? Simply because she was the best. 

“Julia Roberts just got saved by Richard Gere in our living room.” Sofia came into the bedroom where she found Sara sitting on the computer.   
“Huh? We have celebrities in our living room? They live in Los Angeles? I thought they live somewhere else.” And even when they lived in L.A., why were they in the living room and why had Julia Roberts been at risk?   
“Our actors are practicing for a theater version of ‘Pretty woman’ and the one who plays Julia Roberts was saved from her personal Richard Gere.”  
“Ah, okay.”  
“I doubt we’ll ever have the real ones in our living room. And if they were there, I’d drag you down.”  
“Why?”  
“Because they’re stars.”  
“Only people like we are.”  
“With a slightly higher income…what are you doing?” Sofia looked at around four dozen books, CDs, DVDs, shirts and other things Sara had placed all around the desk. Was her lover rearranging the room?   
“Remember the big box of things we used after we moved up here for things we probably don’t need anymore?”  
“Yes.”  
“These things are out this box, I sell them on Ebay. You can sell things for free today and I thought, it’s a great way to make some extra money, get some space. I found a few more things I don’t need or want anymore. When you have things to sell, add them to the rest. The left side is already online, the right side I’m working on.”  
“Uhm…okay…let me have a look.” There were various boxes with Sofia’s things, she had left on the attic when they moved up here. She could have a look at them. And her shelf. Reading the titles of the books her first thought was, she could read them again. Then, when she was honest to herself, she knew, she wouldn’t read ninety percent of them not again. How many of her books had she already twice? Two or three.   
With a sigh she took two books out, added them to the right pack. These two books belonged to a series and they weren’t that great anymore…okay, the whole series wasn’t her favorite anymore. Why keep them? Spontaneously she put the other ten book of the series on the pack too. That wasn’t that difficult. Lets see if she could do more.   
Book after book ended on the pack, at the end her book shelf missed twenty books. Satisfied she turned to the wardrobe. In there were her ‘whatever box’. A box with things, she didn’t get herself over to throw away, that reminded her somehow of different things and she never used again. Souvenirs, bits and peaces. Did they have any value? Why not try it when it was for free today.   
“Before you add more to the pack, take photos of your things in case they haven’t their own photos saved.” Sara said. “The camera is over there.”  
“Okay. Shall I help you?”  
“Would make things easier. But first get all the things you don’t want anymore. I’ve around fifty CDs I will sell. Even some vinyl.”  
“Remember the stamp collection we found when we cleaned this area up? We can sell them too.”  
“True. What did the man in the shop offer you?”  
“A hundred dollar and it was written all over his face they are worth more. We put them online for this price and see how much we get.”  
“Why don’t you continue here and I get them? It’s complicated to get upstairs with crutches.”  
“I’ll manage, thanks. You can give me a hand later, I’ll look for more things to sell. How much money do you think can we make?”  
“I made once four hundred dollar when I sold a lot of things. Christmas isn’t far away, people are buying more things, this is a good time to make money.”  
“True. Are you buying my presents on Ebay too?”  
“Who knows? Are you sure you’ll get some?”  
“Absolutely.”  
“We’ll see.” Sara grinned. “What about your ten million clothes?”  
“Ten million? These few?” The blonde laughed. Maybe Sara was right, she had a lot of clothes and she could sell a few. Especially the things she wouldn’t wear anymore. There were also a few pairs of nice high heels she didn’t want to wear anymore with her prosthesis. Or couldn’t wear anymore. When she kept them, looked at them, they only made her sad because she couldn’t wear them anymore.   
“Here you go, happy?” She dropped the bag with her high heels next to Sara.   
“You want to sell your shoes?”  
“I can’t wear them anymore, no point in keeping them. Unlike my girlfriend, I plan to buy a Christmas present for the one I love and when I make a lot of money with my old shoes, I can buy her something really nice.”  
“You’re such a wonderful woman with an awful lover.” Sara teased.   
“I know.” Sofia kissed Sara’s hair and left the room. Time to have a look on the attic what was there for them to sell. The more things she found, the more excited she got. This was a little bit like gambling, you never knew how much you won. And who knew, when they made good money, they could maybe buy themselves a little holiday trip.   
On the attic she needed a minute to breathe. With one leg it wasn’t that easy to climb the ladder. There were her boxes. Clothes, clothes, clothes, books, clothes, clothes, bits and peaces, clothes…okay, okay, she got it, she had too many clothes. But she was a woman, it was quite normal for a woman to have too many clothes and complain at the same time, that there was nothing to wear in her wardrobe.   
“What are you doing here?” Don asked. He had seen the light and heard somebody on the attic when he went to the gym area.   
“I look for things I can sell ob Ebay. There are a lot of clothes up here…”  
“Tell me about it, I carried your boxes upstairs.” He smirked. “Was a good workout.”  
“Want to carry them down again?”  
“All of them?” He looked surprise.   
“Uhm…no…” No, she couldn’t give them all away. Carefully she sat down and opened the first box. Her Chanel suit. So sexy, so expensive, so…good to sell. It looked only good to high heels and after today she wouldn’t own any anymore. So there was no point in keeping this dress. And all the others, she couldn’t wear with flat shoes.   
“This one.”  
“Chanel.” Don said.   
“Yeah. That will bring some money.” Not happy she took the next suit out. It was definitely easier to give books away than clothes. How was she supposed to give away a sexy short red dress that made her legs look like they were endless? Whenever she wore it, she turned heads, made people gasp for air. This was hard!


	2. Chapter 2

9th of December

“We could ignore this nasty little piece of electronic a little bit longer.” Sara pulled her lover closer and slapped on the SLEEP button of their alarm clock.   
“Easy for you to say, you have to be at work at half past one.” Sofia complained.  
“While you were told to stay at home, see your doctor and come later to work. Your appointment with doctor Bendler isn’t before nine. She squeezed you into her breakfast break. Two more hours before you have to leave.”  
“Or I get up, work a little bit on the papers I took home and see my doctor later.” When she was forced to stay away from her hot cases, Sofia wanted to work at home.   
“Yes, that’s a possibility too.” Carefully Sara nibbled on the blonde’s ear. She didn’t complain when Sofia took work home, when her lover worked on evidence and reports last night for over two hours, today she didn’t feel like making it easy for the blonde to get back to work. Her left hand moved slowly under the thin shirt Sofia wore today and caressed the warm skin.   
“Are you planning to play unfair?” With closed eyes Sofia savored the touch of her lover, the lips gently pulling on her earlobe and teeth biting their way down her throat, making her shiver with anticipation.   
“Never.” Letting her hand travel up until it reached the left breast, she stopped there, moved her left leg over Sofia’s legs. Caught. No chance for her lover to move away, leave the bed and go to work.   
“Liar.”  
“Punish me.” Rubbing the nipple between her index finger and thumb the brunette knew, she had nothing to fear, she was in control. Quiet moans told her, there were no more thoughts of getting up any time soon. When the alarm clock get off again in ten minutes, they’d be both very busy with other things than paying attention to it.   
“Later.” Sofia pulled Sara on top of herself, pulled her head down and kissed her demanding. Work, who wanted to go to work early? What a stupid idea. There were better things to do. Her tongue entered the mouth of the brunette, met the other tongue and a playful duel started about who decided about speed. Both giving in, taking back the power to give in again. Give and take, offer and play.   
Long ago were Sofia’s hands busy, running up and down Sara’s back, her sides, pulling the shirt of the brunette higher and higher, setting more and more skin free. Ready to break their kiss for a second, the shirt was pulled over Sara’s head only let her do the same with Sofia’s. Immediately their lips met again.   
Now, skin on skin, Sofia’s left hand moved to Sara’s right breast, stroke it, moved in little circles around the nipple before it was touched and the brunette moaned. Hard, already standing up, Sofia had no problems to play with the nipple, teased it, left it, came back and started all over again.   
Her right leg moved up and down, rubbing Sara’s center through the thin fabric. A slip was all the other woman wore and on her naked leg she felt the cotton was already wet. Something that made herself more aroused.   
Not willing to give Sofia all power, Sara’s right hand went south, played for a few seconds with the slip of the other woman, like she wasn’t sure if she wanted to get under it or not. Her decision turned to not, softly her hand moved over the slip before moved a little bit to the right, so she didn’t touch the hot center.   
“You’re a tease.” Sofia complained when their lips were apart for a second.   
“Punish me.” Sara dared again.   
“I will.” With both hands she held the upper body of her lover, moved her a bit so she had the left nipple in her mouth. Sucking, gently biting and playing with her tongue, she listened to the moans and loud breath of the other woman, who moved up and down Sofia’s right leg, rubbing her hot and wet center, making the blonde also breathe heavier.   
“Enough joy for you.” Sara shifted her body so she reached Sofia’s breasts with her mouth. With kisses placed around the nipples, writing little hearts with her tongue on the skin, she gave herself all the time in the world to taste, feel and tease the blonde. For the split of a second her tongue touched the left nipple only to leave it again.   
“You think you rule this game, don’t you?” Sofia grumbled.   
“I do.”  
“In your dreams.” Getting her hand between her and Sara’s pelvis, she got under the slip and touched the brunette’s clit. Heat and wetness greeted her. Immediately Sara’s mouth went down and sucked on a nipple while she moaned. So much for ruling this game.   
“Honey, you’re playing a dangerous game.” Sara gasped.   
“Why?”  
“You go on like this and I come.”  
“Sounds good to me.”  
“Sounds only good to me when you come with me.” Sara’s hand went down to find heat and wetness between Sofia’s legs. Now it was the blonde who moaned and moved her pelvis closer to the brunette to increase the pressure. Accommodate her moves to the blonde, Sara stroke softly over Sofia’s clit, around it, while her lips found the blonde’s. Hungry lips, playing tongues added more thrill, made them moan more, move faster, pushing each other closer to the edge.   
“I love you.” Sara whispered.   
“Love you more.” Sofia closed her eyes, pressed her lips back on Sara’s and felt how they both carried each other the edge. And all she felt then was love. 

“We should start more often into new days like we did today.” Sara placed kisses all over Sofia’s back.   
“Absolutely.” The blonde leant into the other woman. After another half an hour snuggling and kissing in bed, they had a shower and got dressed now. With one leg Sofia had to use her bathroom chair and a pillow to support herself a bit. The infection was gone, a bandage protected the fresh wound. For a few more days Sofia wasn’t supposed to use her prosthesis so the wound could heal without pressure.  
“Can we promise each other to take an extra five minutes every morning? Only for us, to realize how lucky we are to have each other.”  
Sofia pulled her lover into her arms. “We will. I’m sorry I was away for so long the last days. It’s because of me why we don’t spend much time together at the moment.”  
“You have to work, it’s not like you have a choice.”  
“I could work only eight hours, like my doctor advised me to do.” The eight hours shift doctor Bendler ordered was expanded into a ten hours day.   
“Honey, we both know how it is to work a hot case. It’s not possible to stop after eight hours.”  
“Nevertheless…I try to be back earlier…”  
“I won’t be back until ten.”  
“Right. When is your next day off?”  
“When your parents arrive – or Jules decides it’s time to become a mom. I promised Greg to be there, as his support.”  
“Call me too, if I can make it somehow, I want to be there too. Although I’m afraid, when Greg is gone I’ve to stay. Keep me posted. Do you know which one will be your godchild? Did you and Jules talk about it?”  
“No. I know the godfather of my godchild will be Jules’s brother while the other godfather will be Greg’s cousin from San Diego. How they decide who gets which child, I’ve no idea. It doesn’t matter, does it?”  
“No. You know, I can walk around the reservoir without crutches, we could talk about babies; if you want.”  
Sara smiled. “A baby or an adopted child?”  
“Uhm…now you got me. Would you rather adopt a child? Are we allowed to adopt?”  
“Yes we are.”  
“Okay. Let me think about it. I liked the idea of having your child…but I also like the idea to give a child a new home; especially because I know your foster families weren’t good to you. We can make it better, can show a child, it can be great to get a new family.”   
“Think about it. Come on, time for breakfast or you’ll be later for your doctor appointment. Alison doesn’t like it when you keep her waiting.”  
“You can’t make up your mind if you want to call her Alison or doctor Bendler, can you?”  
“I try to call her Alison, liked she asked me to, but it feels strange and I’ve to get used to it.”  
“You’ll manage.” Sofia took her crutches. With Sara’s help she made it down to the kitchen where dogs waited for them.   
“Hey guys, how are you? Hungry?”  
“I bet they are. Look, there’s fresh coffee, Don must have been here earlier. We missed the chance to see him because we had sex.”  
“Do you regret it?” Sofia grinned and got the dog food out of the fridge.   
“Not one second.” Sara grabbed Sofia’s collar, pulled her into her arms and kissed her passionately.   
“Don’t you have a room to eat each other?” Sally came into the kitchen. "This is a community kitchen and not a peep show."  
“You have to eat on the table. Never had sex on the kitchen table?” Sara asked coy, Sofia still in her arms.   
“Yuck, I think I want to eat in my room – for the rest of the time I live here.”  
“Don’t be silly.” Sofia got out of Sara’s arms and jumped on one leg to the bowls of the dogs. “We had our sex for the morning, that’s why we’re late. You should get yourself a boyfriend and try the same.”  
“Next week, this week I’m too busy with work and work. First the steady job and later the nice job. Don’t you have to work?”  
“I’ve to start late and my lovely CSI has to see her top surgeon first. Where is Tony?”  
“He had a date last night and maybe he got lucky…everybody except me has sex.”  
“Don had sex last night?”  
“No, he is too busy working…I should have an affair with Don.”  
“Sometimes it’s good to be single to let the perfect one find you.” Sara poured coffee for all of them.   
“Or she sleeps night for night next to you, doesn’t care you’re head over heels in love with her and keeps you waiting.” Sofia sighed. Like Sara did. For so many nights they had shared the bed and nothing happened.   
“When I remember correctly you were busy with this pseudo actress.”  
“Didn’t we agree on not mentioning this slip anymore?”   
“An interesting story?” Sally asked.   
“No!”  
“A well known actress?”  
“No.”  
“She gave a highway cop a blow job so he would let her get away with speeding. Or was it a traffic cop? Who cares.” Sara prepared tow slices of toast and muesli   
“You didn’t like her.”  
“No brain, no personality.”  
“But what a body.” Sofia added and ducked when Sara threw the tea towel. “Just saying. The outside is great.”  
“Wanna go back to the great outside?”  
“No, I’ve got a girlfriend with a great inside and outside. The perfect woman, the one I’ve waited for all my life.”  
“Mhm…if I ever see this slut close to you I’ll kill both of you. Sit down, have breakfast. Sally, do you want some toast too?”  
“No, I’m on a no carbs diet. Only fruits and eggs.”  
“Sounds horrible.” Sofia shrugged. “No chocolate. No, that’s nothing for me. I prefer to eat what I want and exercise. Sex is a great exercise.”  
“That’s why I’m on a diet.”  
“And you sit down and eat, you have to hurry.” Sara pushed Sofia on a chair. “Lets eat, I take you to Alison and the lab.”  
“Thanks. For breakfast and the ride.” Sofia smiled. Sara would drive her. Meant, they had time to hold hands in the car, a few more kisses and make out on the back…no, no make out on the backseat, they were too old for this…weren’t they?

After she drove Sofia back to the lab it was time for Sara to see doctor Luria. They were later with their appointment this week, because the psychiatrist hadn’t been in town the first three days.   
“Good morning doc, how was your advanced training?” Sara sat on the comfortable arm chaired she sat most times. The window in her back so she couldn’t get distracted by things that happened outside.   
“Very helpful and interesting. How was your week?”  
“Not nice, a lot of bad things happened, but I coped.”  
“Anything good happened too?”  
“The fact I didn’t let the bad things pull me down it’s a good thing. And I had the chance to spend some time with Sofia this morning.”  
“How is she?”  
“Getting better, which was one of the bad things. She had an infection on her stump, I had to force her to see your aunt, she had a little surgery and now Sofia has to keep off the prosthesis for a few days so the wound can heal. It makes things harder for her, she depends a lot on other people, but she’s free of pain.”  
“That’s good. Are any of the bad things important for us? Shall we talk about them? Or was Sofia’s health condition the worst part of it?”  
“When something is wrong with her it’s always the worst that can happen to me. We took care of it and now there’s one thing left and that’s definitely a topic for us to talk about: Sam is back in town.”  
“I assume your brother didn’t call and told you he’d be back this week.”  
“No.”  
“What does he want?”  
“Talk to me. Maybe he thinks the spirit of upcoming Christmas makes me feel like I’ve to spend time with him.”  
“The fact you said you ‘have to’ and not ‘want to’ tells me, you don’t want to talk to him nor do you want to see him. While you’re aware he’s still in town and will approach you again. What will you do when he is back?”  
“Tell him to leave me alone, which he’ll ignore.”  
“How do you feel when you see him?”  
“Angry. Afraid. Helpless. Reminded of my past. Annoyed. One part of me wants to know why he keeps coming back, the other part tells me, don’t ask, don’t make him feel you care for him. He doesn’t deserve your interest, your time. It’s…I’m a little bit torn. Can you tell me which side is the right one?”  
“No, only you can tell yourself which side is the right. What is the best thing that can happen when you sit down with him, at a place where you feel comfortable, and let him tell you, what he wants?”  
“He tells me why he is here and leaves. But when…”  
“No but, no bad possibilities. I want you to think of the good ones. What is the best thing that can happen when you try to avoid him?”  
“He stays away and I know Sam well enough to know, he’s stubborn and won’t stay away. Stubbornness is a family problem.”  
“Being strong minded bears the danger to get stuck in your world, ignore what other says, offer.”  
“Means I should talk to him?”  
“Means you have two possibilities, both have pros and contras, you choose what is best for you. Maybe one decisions seems to be good for a while but doesn’t help for a longer time.”  
“Why can’t you just say I’m supposed to talk to him? Cut this long story short?” Sara sighed annoyed. They were turning in circles.   
“Because it’s your decision, you have to say those words when they’re right for you.”  
“Is there any kind of therapy where you get told what to do? What’s best for you?”  
“Yes, the brain-wash therapy. See one of the religious cults and they’ll do the thinking for you.” Doctor Luria smiled. “Here, in CBT, you have to think and decide for yourself. Even when it’s hard.”  
“It’s the freedom I always wanted when I was a child. Okay, I talk to him. But not when he just appears in front of the house, I want to meet him somewhere in a café, give him a certain amount of time and that’s it.”  
“Tell him.”  
“He’ll feel like he won and I gave in because I’m weak.”  
“No, you can choose. You can continue to send him away or you say, okay, we talk but here are my conditions. You don’t accept them, you can fuck off.”  
“Fuck off? Now you’re talking in a way I understand.” Sara laughed. “Okay, I’ll do it. Are you ready to pick up the pieces of me afterwards?”  
“There won’t be any pieces, you’re stronger than you think you are, Sara. And if you’re unsure, tell Sofia to call you after the time limit you set, is over. If he doesn’t let go, you have your own heroine coming to save you. But I’m sure you can handle Sam alone.”  
“Yeah…I’m gonna kick his ass.” And if not, doctor Luria was right. She could have let Sofia call her and when something was wrong, Sara didn’t have to say it, Sofia would knew just by listen to her voice for a second. And the whole Hollywood PD would be after Sam within a minute. She wasn’t alone, she had back-up. The best back-up she could ask for. 

The second day in a row without another kidnapped baby. So far. Sofia started to feel slightly positive it would stay like this. The first three times the kidnapper and now killers stroke in the morning, it was after lunch now and no call arrived them. Of course it could mean, if they killed a pregnant woman again, nobody had found the body until now but she preferred to think positive.   
“I’ve been through the evidence of the last case twice and got nothing that will get us closer to the killer or his accomplices.” Frustrated Greg sat down. “No video, no DNA, not even the chloroform tissue. You know, for a moment I asked myself if these guys are the same like in the first two cases. The MO is different, it could be somebody else.”  
“Yes, but the coincidence is really big, isn’t it?”  
“Why? I checked on the internet, you’d be surprised how often pregnant woman get killed because somebody wants to the baby. I’m not talking about organized crime, I talk about the average woman, who wants to have a baby, can’t have one herself for whatever reasons, snaps and kills the next pregnant woman she sees, so she can have the baby. I feel like locking Jules away.”  
“Not a good idea.”  
“I know. Besides, she can’t really go anywhere.”  
“That bad?”  
“If her cousin wasn’t there I couldn’t be here. She can only get out of bed with help and is in pain.”  
“Oh shit.”  
“Yes. And she doesn’t want to go to hospital and put an end to this. Don’t argue with a pregnant woman, in case you and Sara want to have a baby too and she’s pregnant. They’re always right.”  
“It would be me who’ll be pregnant. We talked about it this morning and Sara said, she can also imagine adopting a child. We both know about her past and I think it’s a nice idea to adopt a child. Of course your own child is special and I’d love to have a mini Sara, but to give a child a new home, give it the love it deserves, is good too.”  
“Every child is lucky to come to you. A big house, great people and two dogs.”  
“Do you think we can adopt a child and continue to live in a shared house?” Sofia didn’t want to give up her shared house. The debt she paid for it was still high and when they decided to live in there alone, it would take a long, long time before the mortgage was paid off. Plus she really liked to have people around. Since they lived upstairs under the roof, they had their own little place, could stay for themselves without a problem, but she was too much a people person to live…well, it felt like alone when the other three were gone.   
“Sure, why not? It’s not like you live in a drug house.”  
“No, more a law enforcement – actor – ranger – house. Anyway, first we’ll get your twins home, let them test the room upstairs and later we can see what will come next.”  
“I heard your parents are coming over too.”  
“Yes, next week. I’ve to be able to walk on my prosthesis by then or they won’t stop worrying about me.”  
“Maybe they’ll buy you another trip to a Caribbean Island.” He grinned.   
“No, that was a one time only thing, I wouldn’t accept it another time, neither would Sara. We think about going to Mexico in spring time, before or after spring break.”  
“Sounds nice. I’ll be changing diapers by then. Jules will reopen her office in February, I had a look for day care places close to her office or the lab. Two are my favorites, we have to visit them together when the twins are there.”  
“Just leave them with me when you go, take your fiancé to a nice restaurant afterwards, then a few drinks and if you have to, you come around and pick the twins up. If not, feel free to leave them with me.”  
“You’re really obsessed with children, aren’t you?”  
“There’s a huge child inside me and I’ve always wanted children. Fate never gave me the right man to start a family, now I’ve the perfect woman and we might start a family in a not traditional way. Which is absolutely fine.”  
“Better than kidnapping one.”  
“Yeah.” Sofia’s smile faded away. “Did you talk to the parents?”  
“No. They’re all four in psychological treatment, our boss talks to them once a day but there’s nothing he can tell them. No traces, no signs of their kids, nothing. The police got a few calls from people, who might have seen something, but everything ended in a dead end. There are half a dozen people who saw Shirley yesterday morning walking but nobody saw how she got attacked.” They got a name of the woman in the late afternoon. Shirley Webster, she wasn’t married, didn’t have a boyfriend. Her family lived in Oregon, what made it difficult to get a picture of her life. The police was talking to colleagues today.   
“Did she walk there regularly?”  
“Yes, every day at the same time. They check their victims out, follow them.”  
“What do we know about her?”  
“She worked as a fitness couch, had her own courses, helped in a studio too. Our kidnaper might have been a customer, her found out in which area she lived, found out she has a daily or regular routine and uses this.” Greg sighed. At the moment it looked like it wasn’t a good idea to be outside when you were pregnant, never told anybody where you live and change your every day life every day so there wasn’t a routine. Impossible.   
“Anything new about the internet group?”  
“No, the page hasn’t been touched for a while.”  
“Can we see if somebody responds to the page?”  
“No, there’s an email address, the police couldn’t find the one who’s responsible for it. An ordinary address from a page where you get your account for free. The address they left there is bogus and whenever the police deletes the address there’s a new one soon; or a complete new page. FBI and Interpol tried to contact them, wanted to make them believe, they’re a client, but somehow these guys knew who they really were.”  
“They are very good organized.” Sofia hated the knowledge the bad guys had been one step ahead so far. And that for not only a couple of days but how it seemed a long time. Not the best precondition to catch them fast. 

As if her brother had placed a bug in the office of doctor Luria, he was there when Sara came back home. Leaning against his car, that was parked in front of the left garage. Shades, suit and his usual attitude. Before Sara could decide if she really wanted to face him or just turn the car and drive straight to work, he noticed her. Turning would be cowardly now.   
“Didn’t I tell you to leave me alone?” Annoyed she stepped out of her car. Anger was better than fear. Being annoyed and angry suited her much better than being scared and insecure.   
“I want to talk to you, Sara. No matter how often you or one of your friends pull a gun – something I could send him to jail for – I will come back.”  
“You can’t send anybody to jail, you’re not the police. You’re a lawyer. Not the kind of person the police likes.”  
“I’m your brother.”  
“On the paper when it comes to DNA.”  
“It doesn’t matter how you call it.” He stepped in her way, was between her and the front door. “You’re my sister.”  
“Get out of my way, Sam.”  
“Not until you’ve talked to me.”  
“I talk to you since I’ve left the car. Get out of my way or I call the cops. You’re trespassing again.”  
“Do you want to hide for the rest of your life?”  
“No, just the next twenty-five years like you did.” She pushed him aside and heard how the door to the balcony was opened above her. A second later she heard Tony’s voice.   
“Do I have to get my gun again?”  
“Is he your personal bodyguard? Or boyfriend? What happened to your girlfriend?” Sam didn’t seem to be too impressed by Tony and his thread.   
Ignoring his question Sara looked up at Tony. It wasn’t Sam’s business if Sara was in a relationship and with whom. “I’m fine Tony, thanks.”  
“Sure?”  
“Yes.”  
“I leave the door open, one call and I’ll be there and give this little piece of shit his third eye.”  
“Thanks Tony.” Sara unlocked the door. “If you really want to talk to me, come to the little coffee shop on West Silver Lake tomorrow at ten. The one not too far away from the dog’s playground. I give you half an hour.”   
“Seriously? You give me a time limit?” He seemed to be amused.   
“Take it or leave.”   
“Eleven. If you’re not there I’ll be back here and won’t leave until we’ve talked.”  
“You come back here uninvited and I call the police. This is my home, I don’t want you here. The coffee shop at ten, nothing else. And now go.” She stepped inside and closed the door without turning around. Immediately she was surrounded by the dogs.   
“Did you listen through the door and made sure I’m fine? You’re the best.” She pulled both in her arms. “I love you guys.” Wet tongues told her, she was also loved. A lot. “And if it’s okay with you, I take you with me tomorrow. Together we’ll face my brother and give him half an hour of our time. God, I really did it. An hour ago doc Luria and I talked about it, now it’s reality. Do you think Sofia will be proud? Or more nervous? Or annoyed because I’m so stupid? We’ll see later, I’ll tell her tonight. Why don’t we get your leashes and go out for a walk?”  
The dogs didn’t need a second invitation. Turning, they were on their way to get their leashes. A walk was always welcome. 

“Hey Jules, did you dial the wrong number?” Sofia answered her cell phone. “You didn’t call Greg and I can’t hand you over, he isn’t in at the moment.”  
“Hi Sofia, I didn’t want to call Greg, I want to talk to you.”  
“Okay. What’s up? Are my babies on their way?”  
“No…can you come over?”  
“Why?” Suspicious Sofia dropped the pen she played with like she did most times when she was on the phone. Something was wrong. Jules didn’t call her for no reason and when she wanted to see her, there had to be something wrong. “Did something happen to Sara?” Did doctor Bendler call her daughter to call Sofia because Sara was in hospital? Was her lover injured?   
“No, it’s not about Sara. Can you come over?”  
“I’m at work…can you give me a reason for my boss?”  
“Can you come over without telling Greg?”  
“Jules, what happened?”  
“I might have evidence regarding to your cases…but don’t let Greg know.”  
“He’s the primary CSI of these cases.”  
“Please.”  
“Does it have anything to do with the woman who got killed?”  
“Could be.”  
“Okay, that’s enough for me to call Don, he has to give me a lift. I try to be there ASAP. You are all right, aren’t you?”  
“Yes.”  
“Good. Give me a few minutes.” Getting her crutches Sofia walked over to her boss’s office. “Hey boss, I got a call from a woman, who might have information about our cases. Is it okay when I call a cop and get over?”  
“Without Greg?”  
“He’s out, at the last crime scene with the guy from swing.”  
“You make sure you don’t walk too much and come back in time, understand me?”  
“Yes Sir.”  
“And you will call a cop because you can’t drive in your condition.”  
“Yes Sir.”  
“Leave.”  
“Thanks Sir.”   
“Don’t Sir me, Sofia.”   
“Sorry.” She smiled and went back into the office. Calling Don she tried to get to her kit but had to stop. It wasn’t possible to walk and be on the phone with only one leg.   
“Lieutenant, what’s up?”  
“Don, how busy are you?”  
“You haven’t been away from the department to know how busy I am with the case I work. Why?”  
“I need you to come over and pick me up.”  
“Everything all right?”  
“Jules called me, she might have evidence regarding our case. She asked not to tell Greg, I can’t go there alone and I need somebody to drive me. If you don’t have time I call Kyle or Lynn.”  
“I’m with you in a minute. Did anything happen to Jules?”  
“She said she’s okay, but her voice was shaky.”  
“Get your kit and come out, I pick you up.”  
“Thanks.” She put her kit in a backpack she stored in the office for occasions like today, when she had to go somewhere, had to use her crutches and had no free hand for her kit. Feeling slightly guilty that she didn’t call Greg, she left the building. Was it right to keep it a secret from her friend? The problem was, another friend asked her not to tell him. Until she knew what exactly had happened, it was better to do, what Jules asked for. Later she could change her mind and call Greg. Who would be mad. Bugger.   
It didn’t take Don longer than four minutes to be there, as soon as he stopped the car, Sofia got inside.   
“Thanks.”  
“No problem. To Jules?”  
“Yes.”  
“What else did she say?”  
“Nothing.”  
“Is she alone?”  
“She shouldn’t. Her cousin arrived yesterday and said, she’ll stay with Jules as long as Greg is at work.”  
“After the last case we worked together I think, no pregnant woman should be alone anymore. When Greg gets crazy I can understand him.”  
“Me too.”   
“What did doctor Bendler say about your leg?”  
“The wound looks good, no further surgery is needed. A few more days and I can use my prosthesis again.”  
“And you can continue to work.”  
“Yes.”  
“She wanted to you to stay at home?”  
“For a day or two. Nice offer, but with our cases I rather work.”   
“Of course. No matter if CSI or lieutenant, you stay a workaholic.”  
“It’s in my blood.” Like it was in Sara’s blood. They both needed their jobs, worked a lot. Not that much like they did in Vegas, they had the promise to spend a certain amount of time every day together and both of them kept the promise.   
“Lets see what Jules has.” Don stopped the car in front of the house.   
“I hope nothing.” Before they reached the door Tanya opened it.   
“Hey, thanks for coming over.”  
“No problem. Tanya, that’s detective Donald Flack, Don that’s Jules’s cousin Tanya. Where is Jules?”  
“In the bedroom, she can’t go down the stairs anymore. She’s fine, well as fine as she can be in her physical condition.”  
“Okay. Why did she call us?”  
“Because of that.” Tanya pointed to a big box, that was half opened. Inside was a huge teddy bear.   
“A teddy bear? What has a teddy bear to do with our case?”  
“Neither her nor Greg ordered it.”  
“Who’s the sender?”  
“There’s no name on the box.”  
“Somebody sent her a big teddy bear without a sender? Did you check the box if there’s a note inside?”  
“I did. Nothing. Who sends a teddy bear without leaving the name? And…”  
“And what?”  
“It was delivered in a white van, no writing on it. Usually I wouldn’t think about it, wouldn’t notice it, but I read enough about the case in the Hollywood Hills, about the gardener with the black van and no writing on. What, if this was the same van, only painted? They had enough time to do it and nobody looks for a white van.”  
“How did the deliver man look like? Was it a man or a woman?”  
“A man. Six foot one? Six foot two? Bleached blond hair, can’t give you an eye color, he wore shades.”  
The hair color didn’t fit, but it was, like Tanya said, bleached so it could be natural dark. The size of the man was right, around the same size the doctor in Hollywood Palms was. Not enough to be sure but enough to be alert. “Did you open the door?”  
“Yes, like I said, Jules can’t make it down the stairs anymore …can we sit down?”  
“Sure.” They followed Tanya in the living room and sat down.   
“Just tell us what happened, tell us all the details, even when they seem to be unimportant to you. And what you felt, what made you feel uncomfortable.” Don said.   
“How do you know I felt uncomfortable?” Tanya looked at him surprised.   
“You paid attention to the man, the surroundings. Something triggered that, something inside you told you, you have to be cautious.”  
“I don’t know what it was…okay, I start from the beginning. We were upstairs, watching a senseless TV show when the doorbell rang. Jules said, she doesn’t expect any visitors, I went downstairs, opened the door and this man was there with the box. Like I said, I couldn’t see his eyes but I had the feeling, he was slightly irritated to see me. Like he expected somebody else. He…I think when he hadn’t worn the shades I had seen him staring at my belly. Oh I remember, while I opened the door, I called up to Jules Greg can do it. We were talking about decoration for the babies rooms. She wanted me to put up some pictures but I said Greg can do it and decide where they should be.”  
“Did the man say something?”  
“Only: a parcel for Mrs. Weinberg.”  
“Did he have an accent?”  
“Maybe a hint of a Russian accent. I took it, he looked at me for a second or so, turned and left. He was creepy.”  
“Was there another man or woman around?”  
“An elderly couple came up the streets and called over: Good morning Jules. They must have mistaken Jules and me. I described them to Jules, she said they live next door and both have bad eyes.”  
“Anybody else? In the van?”   
“I don’t know, the windows were tinted. Sorry.”  
“Did you see the license plate?”  
“No, sorry. I took the parcel and carried it inside, without paying more attention to the man. I didn’t look through the window or anything like that. Sorry.”  
“That’s okay.”  
“What now?”  
“Now you tell Jules we’re here and I come up in a minute to talk to her. Bring her some chocolate.”  
“Okay.” Tanya got up and stopped before she was out of the room. “It was the same guy, wasn’t it?”  
“We don’t know for sure.”  
“But there is the possibility.”  
“Yes.”  
“I better not tell her.”   
“No.”  
Sofia waited until she and Don were alone. “What do you think?”  
“You should be a lieutenant again and our friend needs protection. To me, it sounded like these guys. I don’t say they came here today to kill Jules, cut out the twins. It could be they only wanted to see how far she is, when they can come back to get the twins, but I’d definitely say, she shouldn’t be here alone anymore. Also not alone with her cousin.”  
“I agree. How do we tell her in a sensitive way?”  
“I leave that to you.”  
“You’re the cop, you talk to the people.”  
“You did it just fine. Let me call for back-up and another CSI. Greg can’t work this case, it’s his house. You shouldn’t do it neither, she’s your friend.”  
“Makes me better.”  
“I call your boss, if he’s fine with you here alone, surely I won’t say anything against it. And I get an officer to knock on some doors, check out the neighborhood. Do you want to talk to Jules first or have a look at the parcel?”  
“First I talk to Jules.” Sofia took a deep breath. She had to focus on the facts and not on the thought, her friend’s life might have been in danger this morning. 

Her friend was on her bed, looking everything but comfortable and happy. Tanya sat next to her, the TV ran quietly in the background.   
“Hey.”  
“Hey, did you find anything?” Jules tried to sit upright.   
“I haven’t looked yet. You look like you’re in pain.”  
“I am. I don’t want to rush my babies but if they decide to come a few days earlier I’m more than happy about that.”  
“Do you want some water? Coffee?” Tanya offered.  
“No, maybe Don does.”  
“I’ll ask him. Anything for you, Jules?”  
“A new back.”  
“Okay.” With a smile Tanya left the room. She wanted Jules and Sofia being able to talk alone.   
“You saw the box?” Jules asked.   
“Yes. Neither you nor Greg ordered a teddy bear?”  
“No. We bought some toys weeks ago and the rest is supposed to come later. It will take a while anyway until they’ll play. There’s a mobile over each bed, a stuffed animal in the bed and some small toys in a box. And if we buy a big teddy bear, we’d buy two. Both children are supposed to get the same amount of toys.”  
“Your parents? Greg’s parents?”  
“Why would they sent a teddy bear without their name on the box? Tanya said, there is no evidence of who sent it. Plus my mom would bring the bear over when the twins are born, same for Greg’s parents. They’ll be here to see their grandchildren.”  
Sofia knew Jules was right and it made no sense to look for a relative, who sent the teddy bear. But she hoped to find another explanation than the one, that seemed to be the right one. One, that made them happy.  
“Did you get any other toys from people you don’t know? Sent to you via post?”  
“No. Tanya described you the man, is it the same guy who was at the hospital?”  
“Same size, not the same hair color.”  
“His hair was bleached.”  
“Yes.”  
“Was he here to look if I’ve got already the twins or…did he plan to get them himself? Like he did at the Hollywood reservoir.”  
“I can’t tell you. Like I can’t tell you if this guy was the guy we’re looking for. It sounds like him, I don’t believe in coincidence and if it wasn’t him, this was a hell of a coincidence. Tanya said, he looked at her belly, your cousin doesn’t look pregnant at all. Because of his shades she can’t tell his exact expression, but my guess is, he was confused to see a not pregnant woman. He expected you to open the door, alone in the house.”  
“He spied on me.”  
“Yes.”  
“And missed that Tanya arrived and stayed.”  
“Looks like. The problem is, I don’t think Tanya will make him stay away. If he spied on you, took you as a good target, he’ll be back. With his accomplices.”  
“What do you try to tell me?”  
“You and Tanya shouldn’t be here alone. We assume there are at least three men, who kidnap the babies. Three men with weapons. I don’t think they’ll be back today, especially not because Don called some officers to talk to your neighbors, but they can be back any time soon.”  
“Shall we move into a hotel until the birth? Or to my parents?”  
“Is somebody at home there?”  
“No, they both work.”  
“Do you have any relatives who don’t work? Preferable male relatives?”  
“No. Don’t you think I’m safe when I stay inside?”  
“I wouldn’t bet on it.”  
“Okay.” Jules was pale. “I should call Greg, shouldn’t I?”  
“Yes. He needs to know.”  
“And then?”  
“Then…he can’t work here, it’s his home. If my boss clears me I’ll have a look at the box and the teddy bear. Meanwhile you and Greg can think about where to stay. You can stay at our place, we have the spare room. It’s away from here, Tony works from home and from noon on, there are half a dozen people in the house to practice. They have a show in two weeks they need to practice for, at the moment the jobs for them come rolling in, so the house is full. Tanya can sleep on the couch.”  
“Your parents come over soon.”  
“Lets hope we have these guys until they arrive. If not, we can look for another solution. Talk with Greg about it.”  
“Sounds like the best solution. Thanks Sofia.”  
“You’re welcome.”  
“Can we…not tell this my mom?”  
Sofia doubted they could keep this a secret for longer than a couple of hours. Latest when Jules and Greg moved to another place for a while, doctor Bendler would find out. “I won’t tell her.”  
“Thanks. She’ll get nuts when she hears this. Understandably. While Greg will be mad because I didn’t call him right away.”  
“You knew this before.”  
“Yes. I hoped it’s maybe nothing.”  
“Call him, let him pack a few things for a couple of days and we’ll take you over when the police is done.”  
“Don has to ask question or did he leave that to you?”  
“Yeah, he thinks I’m better in talking to you than he is.”  
“As my friend or as a lieutenant?”  
“I’m a CSI.”  
“Your questions were of a lieutenant. You miss being a cop a lot.”  
“Yes. It should get better one day, my therapist told me, I’ll find joy in my new job. Lets hope he isn’t a liar. After all, you told me he’s good and sent me to him.”  
“He is.”  
“You’re better. This rule, you can’t be friend with your therapist, is nonsense.”  
“No, it isn’t. Like Greg can’t work this case.”  
“Call him, I go downstairs again, send your cousin back here. Are there any friends of you coming over today?”  
“Two, later.”  
“Give them a call and tell them, you can’t see them. We don’t need people around the crime scene and later you won’t be here anymore. A low profile is best for now.”  
“And after the birth?”  
“After you gave birth…we look for something else. You can stay at our place, if you want. The room is ready for babies.”  
“Do you have any idea how old the babies are, they’re after?”  
“Roughly under a month. They deliver what’s ordered. If somebody orders a six months old boy, they’ll get one. But the highest demand is for babies under a month. It’s easier to pretend you gave birth to them when neighbors ask you.”  
“Means, we might end up in your room for five or six weeks.”  
“Maybe. If this is the case, I’m happy to have you around. We’re a big happy family already, you bring the family babies with you.”  
“I will take them with me later, you can’t keep them.” Jules smiled a bit.   
“We’ll talk about that when it’s time.” Sofia smiled and squeezed Jules’s hand. Her friend was very brave. And she had to stay brave longer.

When her cell phone rang a smile appeared on Sara’s face. Sofia called her. There was also the feeling of something was wrong, her girlfriend didn’t usually call her at work. Neverthe-less whenever she saw the name on the little screen, she had to smile.   
“Do you miss me?”  
“I always miss you.” Sofia replied. Hearing Sara’s voice made her smile, made her heart jump up and down. And there were still these butterflies in her stomach. Yes, she was still deeply in love like a teenager and it felt good. Between all the bad news she heard every day, Sara and her love were the highlight of her day, her life.   
“Same here.”  
“Can you speak? Or is it a bad moment?”  
“I can take a little break. Good or bad news?”  
“Maybe it’s an ‘I love you call’.”  
“I love you too.” Sara sat down on a bench. She was in the forest, checking on some tracks and preparing them for a thunderstorm, that was supposed to hit the forest during the next night. A few roads had to be closed. “Now tell me the other reason why you called me. Beside the fact you love and miss me.”  
“Okay, first of all, nothing happened, everybody is fine.”  
“But?” Sara’s stomach tightened. When Sofia started like this something had happened.  
“The baby kidnapper might have been to Jules’s house today.”  
“What? Is she all right?” Nothing bad happened? In Sara's ears this sounded very bad.   
“Yes, like I said, nothing happened.”  
“Are they in custody?”  
“No.”  
“How do you know it was them?”  
“We don’ know for sure. It looks like it was one of them. To make sure Jules and the twins are not at risk, we’ll get them over to our place. I told them, they can stay for a while, as long as they want. Even with Tanya over, it’s better when Jules is somewhere else, where more people are around. Tony is the whole day at home, Sally comes back around noon. Is this okay with you?”  
“Of course. She’s really all right?”  
“Yes. Greg is with her, somewhere between anger because she didn’t call him right away, fear and relief because nothing happened.”  
“He must have had a heart attack when she told him.”  
“Probably. I just wanted to tell you what happened.”  
“Thanks.”  
“How was your day after you left me at the lab?”  
“I’ll tell you when I’m back home. You might be proud of me.”  
“I’m always proud of you because you’re the most amazing person I know. When will you be back?”  
“With a little bit of luck I’ll be back by eight.”  
“Sounds great. Okay, I’ve to go back to the lab and work on the box Jules got. If we find any evidence of who sent it, we might catch this guy.”  
“If anybody catches him it’s you. Good luck, see you tonight and take care of the woman I love.”  
“Ditto.” 

Sara was back home on time. Leaving her car in front of the garage she went into the house. Her full house. At least she expected it to be a full house. Voices from the living room told her, she was right.   
“Hi.” Half a dozen students were in there, talking, working on their text and acting various scenes from their show.   
“Hey, sorry for the crowded place – again.” Sally smiled.   
“It’s okay.” Sally and Tony had told them when they asked to use the living room for rehearsal, that if they were too loud or it was too much, to tell them so they could have a look for another place. Of course the room was full and she heard them all, but it wasn’t like they were loud. And most times Sara didn’t sit in the living room.   
“We chased all the others upstairs.”  
“You know you’ll be a kind of bodyguards for Jules?”  
“Yes. Don’t worry, with all these people around, she should be fine. We know who’s in our group, nobody is allowed to bring guests, she’ll be safe like a princess in a tower.”  
“As long as you’re not a group of dragons. Any uninvited visitors?”  
“No.”  
“Good. Enjoy your practice.”  
“Thanks. Two more weeks and it’s show time. We saved you, Don and Sofia tickets.”  
“Cool, thanks. Don’t forget to sign them, they might be worth a fortune one day.”  
“Yeah…an Academy award winner signed your tickets…nice dream.”  
Sara grinned. Somebody had to win the Oscar every year, there was no reason it couldn’t be Sally one day. You had to believe in yourself, in your goals, otherwise you would never reach them.   
Upstairs she found everybody in the second bedroom.  
“Hey.” Pulling Sofia in her arms to kiss her, she smiled at the others.   
“My ranger is back.”  
“Yes. Hello new house mates. Are you all right?”   
“Everything is fine. Now that I’m up here.” Jules said. “It was hard work to get me up to the third story. I doubt I’ll leave it before I’ve to go to hospital.”  
“No need to go anywhere, you have all you need up here.”  
“And you’re safe here.” Greg added. His arm was around his fiancé, like he wanted to make sure, she was with him, couldn’t go away.   
“Mom will come along later. She wants a very good explanation why we’re here. Any idea what to tell her?”  
“The truth?”  
“She won’t like the truth.”  
“Neither do I, but fact is, this guy could be the faked doctor and with him knowing where we live, knowing you’re pregnant, I won’t leave you alone at out home. I’m even thinking of selling the house at all and move somewhere else.” A few times this thought crossed Greg’s mind. How were they supposed to feel safe when baby kidnapper and murderer knew, where they lived? When they were at their door.   
“We just moved there.”   
“Yes and if it’s the best for my family I don’t hesitate and pack all the things to move somewhere else. Not another city but another area.”  
“You find those men and everything is fine.” Jules took his hand. She tried to be confident, but Sara saw the sorrow in her eyes. They were all more shaken than they said they were. Pretending to be strong so all the other people around you could be strong.   
“For now you’re safe. Is it okay for you to stay here?”   
“Sara, I live between the bed and the bathroom. It’s not like a big entertainment room or special features. All I can do the whole day is lay around, go to the toilet and that’s it. When every step is a fight, you try to stay where you are. Your sleep couch is comfortable, if I feel strong enough, I go and sit on the balcony, otherwise I’ll read and watch TV.”  
“If you need action ask your actors to come up, they can also practice in the gym area and you have something to watch.”  
“I might do that. Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine.”  
“Where’s your cousin?”  
“She is on her way back to Santa Barbara. After Greg arrived and it was obvious, I won’t be alone for the rest of the day, she drove back to get the rest of her things. For tonight she’ll stay with a friend in Santa Barbara before she comes back tomorrow morning.”  
“Okay. Don?”  
“He’s at work, should be here soon.” Sofia kissed her lover. “Relax. Everything is under control.”  
There were a lot of questions on Sara’s mind, CSI orientated questions, she’d ask Sofia later, when they were alone.   
“You have everything here you need?”  
“Yes. A suitcase and if we need anything more, Greg can get it.” Jules took Sara’s hand. “You’re cute when you worry about me.”  
“Now you see how it is when somebody worries the whole time, asks questions and annoys you.”  
“Feels good. What about Sam? Did you see him again? To get the focus away from me and my belly – even when this is difficult.”  
“I prefer you as a topic.” Sara sighed. “Oh well, you know about him, Greg does and Sofia was about to get the whole story later anyway. Yes, I saw Sam, he was here today. We’ll meet tomorrow for half an hour and talk.”  
“Are you sure?” Sofia didn’t feel comfortable about her lover alone with her brother. She remembered how troubled Sara was the last times her brother appeared.   
“Yes. I talked about it in therapy this morning and I made the decision, I talk to him. Told him when and where and for how long. He gets half an hour, not longer.”  
“Shall I come with you?”  
“No, I go there alone. What you can do is, you can call me at half past ten, when the half an hour is over. All you need is to hear my voice and you know if I’m okay.”  
“And if not?”  
“You can send your old officers to rescue me.”  
“Why an officer? You can have a former lieutenant.”  
“My lieutenant has to work.”  
“You’re more important.”  
“I’ll be fine. This the easiest way to get him out of town again.”  
“And if he wants you to come with him? Wants to go with you to San Francisco?”  
“I won’t go there, no matter what he says. The best thing he can get out of tomorrow is, I might meet him again in the future, not more. There’s no way I see my mother. No in the near future.”  
“This meeting doesn’t make me happy.”   
“Neither does it make me happy. Nevertheless I’ll go there, take the dogs with me and now there’s even a psychotherapist here when I come back. In case I need a therapy boost.” Sara smiled at Jules.   
“As an exception. I’d rather be your friend.”  
“Sounds better than therapist. And I call you when I walk back home with the dogs. In case I don’t feel good, need your arms more than I usually do, I promise I’ll tell you.”  
“Okay. Take my ankle gun with you, better safe than sorry.”  
“You can’t send Sara into a café with a gun.” Jules protested. They weren’t in the wild west, it wasn’t like you needed a gun when you went into a salon to have your beer. They were in the 21st century, in a big city and it was her brother, who would be there and not a bank robber or gold thief.   
“I take it with me as personal security. I don’t plan to wave the gun around, Jules.”  
“Law enforcement people…you won’t have your gun around when the twins are there. I don’t want any weapons around our kids, am I clear?” She poked with her index finger into Greg’s chest.   
“Hey, I don’t like guns.” He held up his hands. Whenever possible he worked without a gun. It had always been this way. Even when he played with the idea to keep the gun at home, in case the kidnapper came back. Before anybody could lay hands on his fiancé or children he’d rather shoot this person. 

“Alison was really mad when Jules told her about the man.” Sara switched off the light and went into bed.   
“Yes. First anger, than she worried about Jules and the twins.” Sofia pulled her girlfriend in her arms and kissed her. “Like your mother-in-law. It will be interesting when they’ll meet next week.”  
“This time they shouldn’t fight. You’re at home. Marie might be angry when she finds out you had an infection, didn’t tell her and went to work.”  
“We don’t have to tell her. According to doctor Bendler the odds are good, I can use my prosthesis when they’re here.”  
“Something that will make your mother more angry when she finds out.”  
“If she finds out.”  
“Your decision, I won’t tell her.”  
“Thanks. Honey, I’m still not happy with your appointment tomorrow. Are you sure it’s good for you to see Sam? I’m afraid he might do or say something stupid and you…you get another bout.”  
“I’ll be fine. Tell me about Jules’s case. Did you find any evidence about the man? Anything that leads you to who he is? Where he lives?”  
“No. The box is a box that once was used for a microwave. We know the brand of the microwave, where it was sold and it was no help. It was sold five years ago, there are various finger prints on it, it was in a bad condition, we guess, it was thrown away and the man pulled it out the trash to use it. We will check on the prints, two sets were from children. I talked to Tanya again, he wore gloves.”  
“Did she have to sign for it?”  
“No.”  
“When you find out who threw it away, you have an idea where he got the box from.”  
“So far we know these people drive around Hollywood, Hollywood Hills and Silver Lake. My bet is, the box is from one of these areas. Los Feliz, WeHo are two other areas he might be active, they’re the closed neighborhood. Or they look for children here and have their place somewhere in East L.A., we have to focus on everything.”  
“Do you think he drives around, looks for pregnant women and stalks them?”  
“I think he has his certain places to look for the woman. Like the Hollywood reservoir. A park. Pregnant women and young mothers tend to be much out in the fresh air. He can follow them, learn their routine. Don’t forget he isn’t alone.”  
“The teddy bear thing made me wonder if he or a member of his team works in a baby shop. Young parents or couples who’ll be parents soon, visit these places often, buy things and when they deliver the bed, wardrobe or whatever, they get the address of potential victims. Jules and Greg bought most things in the same shop.”  
“I’ll ask her…no, Don has to ask her tomorrow where they shopped, where she spend her time outside. If we get a pattern we’re closer to these men. The woman from Hollywood Hills walked around the block every morning. How did they find her? Do they drive around the city? Are they sitting somewhere and wait? Or is one of them working in a shop? Or at a gynecologist. Did they hack into a computer of a gynecologist? All details they need are written in the computer. The police has to check those things.” So many things they could do, had to find out, so little things they knew, found out.   
“Do you think Jules is safe here?”  
“Yes, absolutely. They have no idea where she is and there are plenty of people around, the house has a very good security and Tony and Sally agreed on leaving notes on the door in case they ordered something and which company will deliver those things. If an unmarked van stands in front of the door or nobody ordered something, the door won’t be open.”  
“And when she’s at hospital…doc Bendler will make sure the babies are fine.”  
“They’ve a new security system already. No matter if doctor or nurse, nobody can enter the rooms with the babies alone. There’s a camera in both rooms, whenever the door gets opened, a beep in the nurse room gets the attention of the nurse on duty, she checks on the screen if the people, who are in the room, are from this ward and on duty. It’s enough when there’s one person inside, who isn’t on duty, to call security. Means parents can’t get into the room anymore, they’ve to wait in front of the door to get their baby. And have to show their I.D. each time they get the baby.” Sofia had a longer conversation with one of the nurses of the ward. She wanted to know what had changed, if there had been any other attempts to steal a baby and how parents reacted. Not really her job but she was curious and thought, every detail might be helpful one day.   
“That will make Greg sleep more relaxed.”  
“Yes. As soon as possible they’ll leave the ward and come back here. We’ll have babies next door, our nights won’t be quiet anymore.”  
“The best test for our child. Plus when we have a day off, we can take care of them. Give Jules the chance to sleep a little bit.”  
“She wants Greg to sleep on the couch downstairs to get some sleep. He isn’t happy with this idea.”  
“Of course not. I wouldn’t like to sleep somewhere without you neither.” Sara kissed the blonde’s hair. “What time do you get up?”  
“Half past six.”  
“Okay, then it’s time for us to get some sleep. Will Greg drive you to work?”  
“Yes.”  
“In that case I take the dogs out for a walk and prepare myself for the day.”  
“What time will you be back?”  
“Like today. We close the park at half past five, I can go home two hours later. Short winter days.”  
“Short? Seven hours and a few days ago you worked overtime.”  
“Because two of my colleagues were sick, they’re back and until Christmas we’re all there. From the twentieth until early January a few of us are away, my two days off after Boxing Day shouldn’t be at risk.” They planed to celebrate their Christmas party on the twenty-seventh and eighth. And with Sofia’s parents they’d celebrate an early Christmas.   
“Good. I look forward to our days off. Hopefully we’ve closed the case until then and I can take these days off. Otherwise I might not get more than one day.”  
“One day isn’t much.”  
“Sorry.”  
“Hey, it’s not your fault and you’re in the lucky position to have a girlfriend, who worked the same job, do work now and completely understands when you have to cancel a date. As long as you are here with me every night and don’t spend your nights in the lab, I won’t complain.”  
“Didn’t you sleep one day in the lab? Rumor has it there was an incidence like this.”  
“A long, long time ago. Nobody was waiting for me at home, I was stupid.”  
“Means, even if you still were a CSI you’d rather come home to me than stay in the lab?”  
Instead of answering this question with words, Sara pulled Sofia on top of herself and kissed her passionately. As if there were anything that could be better than her lover, that could make Sara rather stay away than with Sofia. 

10th of December

One more corner and Sara was at the café, where she wanted to meet Sam. Wanted? Had to? Was supposed to meet Sam. Both dogs were by her side, happy after they played for half an hour with other dogs at the dog’s playground. Sofia, still very concerned because of this meeting, promised to call her at half past ten. It wasn’t easy for her to leave her lover alone, let her fight her past alone. Lynn had promised to be around Silver Lake during this half an hour, be ready to get to the café within a minute or two and help Sara, if help was needed. With all those back-up plans her nervousness was kept within a limit.   
There he was! She could see him from where she was. Sam sat at a window, read a paper and had a cup of something in front of him. Apparently he was early. A good or a bad sign? At least she didn’t have to wait for him. As a child he was always late, never came back home on time for dinner and ended in a lot of trouble for this.   
The café was small, offered privacy, good coffee, a look at the reservoir and dogs were welcome. Sara had been here a couple of times, mostly when it rained and she was without an umbrella. It was a good place to stay dry, watch the rain and enjoy a coffee.   
“Morning Shelley.” She knew the owner, who worked most times in the cafe and was also the main waitress.   
“Morning Sara, hello Scooby and Rantanplan. Do you want a table or just a coffee to go?”  
“I’m due to see somebody, he’s already here. Can I have a latte?”  
“Sure, I bring it over to you. And some water for the dogs, they look like they had a little workout already.”  
“Half an hour of playing with their friends. Thanks.”   
Sam had noticed her and got up to greet her.  
“Hello Sara.”  
“Morning Sam. Guys, you stay here with me.” One dog on each side, she sat down, put her hand on Scooby’s head who snarled quietly towards Sam. Whenever this man had been around his mommy wasn’t happy. He wasn’t a good man.   
“Thanks for coming here.”  
“If I hadn’t shown up you’d be back at my home, you know where I live and it seems like you don’t understand I don’t want to talk.”  
“Why?”  
“Lets start with the fact we didn’t talk in almost thirty years, why start with it now? You have your life, I’ve mine. There’s no reason to get reunited.”  
“We’re family.”  
“We were family. Our family ended when mom stabbed dad, you vanished and I was taken into foster care.”  
“You must really hate me.”  
“You came to my home without being invited, when I asked you to go, you stay, came back, tried to force your way into the house. Why would I be happy to have you around? Why would I welcome you with arms wide open?” She stopped when Shelly brought her the latte macchiato. This was a private conversation and she didn’t need a comment the next time she came back here.   
“I left you alone when we were kids.”  
“I’m aware of that.”  
“To say sorry doesn’t take it back what I did or didn’t do.”  
“No.”  
“Is there anything I can say or do to make you…less angry?”  
“Leave me alone.”  
“Do you really want to ignore your past? Our past?”  
“Who says I ignore it? I don’t ignore my past. Correctly I’ve to say, I don’t want to talk with you about it. There are no good memories about our past, nothing I want to remember with you. We weren’t close as kids, we didn’t do nice things together.”  
“Is this why you don’t want to talk to mom anymore?”  
“No, there are other reasons. Since when are you interested in our mother? You didn’t care all these years, never called her, never visited her.”  
“I changed.”  
“So simple?”  
“Not, it wasn’t simple. It took a few years, a few crashes to realize I wasn’t the brother you wish for. Nor was I the son mom wished for.”  
“It’s hard to believe this remorse, Sam. That you changed. And it doesn’t make the things undone.”  
“No.”  
“Why is it this important to speak to me? You came her uninvited, all the way down from Seattle. After I sent you away once, you must have known I won’t be happy to see you again. What made you come here anyway?”  
“I hoped you’d give in. That you give me a chance.”  
“Why? What do you want?”  
“Do you think I’m here because I want something from you, Sara?”  
“Yes.” Why lie? She expected a reason for his visit. A selfish reason, a favor he wanted to ask for. Anything.   
“I don’t want money, like I said, I’m a lawyer and I earn my own money. I’m here to see you, to talk to you. It’s a shame it took me so long to see you, to see mom…she misses you.”  
“Her own fault.”  
“Are you this cold?”  
“Sorry, I can’t see her as my mother anymore. The way she acted, she isn’t a mother, not to me.”  
“Because she killed our father?”  
“That was probably one of the best things she ever did. We don’t have to pretend we loved him or were sorry that he was dead. He made life hell for both of us. I can’t recall all the times we ended in hospital, all the times he punched the crap out of us, the bruises, black eyes. Her stabbing a knife in him was a relief.” The first time she said those words she felt guilty. It had been during therapy, when all those words and thoughts came out of her mouth without her having the chance to stop them, make them stay inside. It was quarter to five, she was supposed to finish this therapy lesson soon and not start a new topic. Doctor Luria and her had sat for over another hour in the office that day, talked about the feeling. The one and only time her therapist had allowed her to stay longer. And the first time Sara really opened up.  
“Yes. He was a bastard and I never cried a tear for him.”  
“He got what he deserved.”  
“Why does mother deserve to be ignored?”  
“She was never there when I needed her. Not when I was a child nor later. When I asked her to support me for the trial against Trevor, when I needed her help, she told me to forget it, leave my past in the past and never talk about it again. I told her I want to see Trevor in a court room, want him to pay, she told not to do it. He raped me repeatedly, did the same to other girls and she wanted him not to pay for it. What kind of mother is she? She doesn’t deserve this title. Not in my eyes.” Okay, maybe therapy did work. There was anger in her voice when she said these things, only anger. Her voice didn’t shake, she didn’t feel like somebody squeezed out her breath. She wasn’t even close to a bout. For a moment, Sara was proud of herself.   
“And you wonder if I knew about it.”  
“I did wonder, now I don’t care anymore.”  
“I didn’t know about it. Without a doubt, Trevor behaved strange, I didn’t trust him, thought he was weird and whenever he came over, I took off. When I read about the trial, read what he did to you, I felt like doing to him what mom did to dad. Doubtless he deserved the same. I did some research about mom, found out where she was and one day I drove to San Francisco to see her. Her disease has changed her. Nevertheless she was happy to see me, I felt guilty for not seeing her this long and wondered, if it was a good idea to call you. Mom wanted us both around, she said she called you but you didn’t answer the phone. So I came down here, to see how you are.”  
“There won’t be a family reunion. You can forget about that.”  
“Okay. And you don’t want to see me anymore?”  
“No.”  
“For now or is it for good?”  
“At the moment I can’t think of a reason why I want to see you again. I’ve my life and I don’t want you or anybody else of the past in it.”  
“Are you happy? With your…was he your boyfriend? The last time we met you were involved with a woman…the brunette I saw you with first? The blonde who gave you the gun? Mom mentioned something about a woman you are with.”  
“I’m happy, I’m settled and I’ve got a new family. A family I can count on, who is there for me. No matter what happens. For many years I was a CSI, I know a lot about blood and DNA and I learnt, it’s not blood and DNA what makes family. Family has nothing to do with blood, it has to do with love. I’ve got a loving family and won’t give them up for anything in the world. My partner loves me unconditionally, my parents-in-law treat me like I am their daughter, they love me more than my blood parents ever did and there are people in my life, who are like siblings. I’ve everything I want and need in my life. What I don’t want and don’t need are people from my past, who weren’t there when I needed them, who disappointed me. You and our mother.” She finished her latte.   
For a few seconds Sam said nothing, only watched her. “You are serious, you don’t want me in your life.”  
“No. This was the one and only time I talked to you. When I go now, it’s over. I can’t stop you from coming to my house, but I won’t talk to you. Safe yourself the time and way, it won’t change a thing. You’re not a part of my life.”  
“Can I give you my card in case you change your mind one day?”  
“No. If I change my mind I have ways to find you. Don’t wait for it. Continue your life and let me life mine.” She got up.  
“No hug.”  
“No, no hug. Have a nice life, Sam.”   
“Am I allowed to pay your coffee?”  
“There’s no need to do so, it is paid. Bye.”  
“Goodbye, Sara.”   
Not looking back she left the café and walked with the dogs down the streets. That’s it. Hopefully the chapter Sam was over. No more unannounced visits, no more surprises. He had his conversation, knew she didn’t want him or their mother in her life and there was no way she’d change her mind. A look on the watch told her, she finished this meeting in less than thirty minutes. With a smile she pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and dialed Sofia’s number. Time to tell her lover she didn’t have to worry anymore. She was fine and on her way home. 

When Sara came home she went straight into the bathroom to get changed. Only five minutes before she was ready to go home, she slipped and ended on her rear end. With the wet floor and the light rain she looked dirty, her pants were still wet and there was some mud on her face.   
Clean and rolled into a towel she went into the bedroom where Sofia sat.   
“Hey, are you hiding?” She had expected to see her lover with Greg and Jules and not alone in the room.  
“No, waiting for my girlfriend to greet me after she vanished into the bathroom.” Sofia pulled Sara in her arms and kissed her.   
“Sorry, I slipped, ended up in mud and was wet and dirty. A short shower and a change of clothes were necessary.”  
“Can’t see any clothes.”   
“I was on my way to get them.”  
“Unfortunately you ended up in my arms first and now the chances are small you’ll be allowed to put come clothes on.”  
“Honey, we’ve visitors next door.”  
“Hm, Greg is out to do some shopping, Jules is asleep and Tanya wanted to walk the dogs.” Letting her lips run over Sara’s skin, the blonde kissed softly her way down from the left cheek to the collarbone. At the same time she pushed Sara towards the bed until the brunette fell backwards and had Sofia on top of herself.   
“You used my favorite shower lotion.” Inch for inch the towel was moved away.   
“It smells nice…like your lips feel nice on my skin.”  
“They like your skin.” With her left hand Sofia pushed her way under the towel and let her fingers run over Sara’s skin. Feeling and tasting her lover. Not willing to take her time today, she let her hand go straight between Sara’s legs. “Honey, you didn’t dry yourself, you’re still wet.”  
“Bad, bad me.” Sara moaned and tried to get her hands on Sofia.   
“No, no, no. You keep your hands by yourself.”  
“What?”  
“This is my game, my rules and my rules say, you keep your hands off me. You want to play too, you have to start your own game.”  
“Are you serious?”  
“Serious enough to cuff you to the bed if you disobey.”   
“Oooh, lieutenant Curtis will cuff me. Nice.”  
“You’re making fun of me? You’ll pay for it.” Now Sofia knew why she had placed a pair of handcuffs on each bedpost. Fast and smooth she had her lover’s hand chained. The advantage Sara had from this was, Sofia leant over her and the brunette used this to get her mouth on the blonde’s nipples. There was the shirt in her way but it was enough to make Sofia moan too and forget her for the split of a second what she planed to do.   
“Now you’re mine.” Her lips back on Sara’s throat Sofia got back on top of the other woman. She was in control.   
“I’m always yours.”  
“Yes you are.”  
“What do you plan to do with me? Helpless like this.”  
“Not much.”  
“Not? That’s a pity.”  
“No, it will be very satisfying for you.”  
“Really?”  
“I promise.”   
“So what’s your plan?”  
“I want to look into your eyes when you come and see your satisfaction and your love.”  
“Will you kiss me?”  
“Absolutely and I start right away.” As soon as their lips met they permitted each others tongue entry, played softly with each other, let them fight for leadership before Sofia let her hand run over her lover’s body again. Only a few seconds to play with the hard nipples, only a few seconds to let her index finger circle around the bellybutton before her hand was back between Sara’s legs. More wetness, more heat. Both moaned from the sensation.   
Slowly Sofia’s finger found Sara’s clit and started massaging it. Adding more and more pressure to the speed, placing her body weight on the brunette, their lips never apart, the blonde felt how Sara lost control over her body. Piece for piece was taken over by Sofia and her moving finger. Breaths got faster, moans a little bit louder but were silent by kisses and so was the last moan of relief when Sara came, eyes open, magically connected to Sofia’s eyes and both saw the same: love. 

12th of December

Bang! Bang! Bang! What an awful dream. Loud dance music? Shots? Sofia wasn’t sure but she hoped the dream would be over soon, she felt uncomfortable with the noise, even a little bit scared. A horrible dream, wasn’t it? It couldn’t be morning, it had to be the middle of the night. Not the time to get up, no reason to get up.   
“Sara? Sofia?”  
Why was somebody calling them? She felt Sara in her arms, felt her warmth and saw no reason why they should be any-where else than in bed. Together. Arm in arm. Undisturbed.   
“Don’t get up, it’s too early.” There was no light coming in through the window. She tried to stop her lover when she felt how Sara started to move.   
“Greg’s calling us.”  
“Too early…what time is it?”  
“Fourish…”  
“Sara? Sofia? We’ve to go, Jules’s water broke!”  
“Water?” Sara’s eyes popped open. You don’t need an alarm clock to get up when you hear your friend is about to go into labor.   
“Babies!” Immediately Sofia was awake and felt like jumping out of bed. Who cared about the time when there were babies due to be born? They didn’t want to miss a second, had promised to be around. Out, out of bed!   
“We’re with you in a minute.” Jumping around the room on one leg the blonde found her pants. Why didn’t she leave everything ready to use close to the bed? She should have known the babies could come every minute.   
“It’s too early.” Sara put on her sweater. “Another ten days.”  
“Lucky twins, they won’t have to celebrate their birthday too close to Christmas, more presents for them. And Jules will be very relieved when she can walk again, isn’t in constant pain all the time and won’t get kicked all day long.”  
Christmas. Presents. Sara froze for a second. “I don’t have a present for Jules. Am I supposed to have one? As one of the godmothers?” Was there a rule she didn’t know? She wasn’t good with family things, why didn’t anybody tell her the most important rules? Told what wasn’t expected.   
“Yes.”  
“Shit!” She knew it. Now she looked like an idiot, what a great start to be a godmother. She messed up the first thing.   
“We’ll get you something while she’s in labor. There’s a shop, all you need is a stuffed animal for your godchild and maybe some chocolate for Jules.”  
“Okay…” Good idea. A hospital shop. They were prepared for everything, there must be a lot of husbands, who became dads and didn’t have flowers for their wives. Sara caught her lover who lost balance for a second when she tried to pick up her crutches.   
“Thanks. Ready?”  
“Yes. Lets see if we’re too late or in time.” Sara opened the door.   
Greg and Jules were at the landing.   
“Hey, can you give us a hand?” Jules’s face was covered in sweat.   
“Sure. What can we do?”  
“I need to get downstairs; somehow.”   
“Let me hold you on one side, Greg, can you take her left armpit and I take the right?” Sara stepped behind the pregnant woman and took her right arm. “Step by step we’ll get you down.”  
“Like you have to push a whale back into the water.”  
“You’re the most beautiful whale ever stranded. Come on, my godchild isn’t supposed to be born in the car. Shall we call an ambulance or your mom?”  
“No! She’d be there within minutes and won’t leave me alone. You can call her when I’m in labor and nobody can get into the room anymore.”  
“She won’t like that.”  
“I told her I don’t want her in the room. Ouch.”  
“Slowly Honey, slowly. You’ve to be careful and don’t rush.”  
“Easy to say when you don’t feel like a truck runs over your body every minute.”  
“Contractions? In this short time distance?” Sofia’s jaw dropped. Every minute...they wouldn't make it to hospital in time in this case.   
“Give or take. Fuck, Greg, get me into Hollywood Palms or I stay here and our children will be born in Sofia’s living room.”  
“One more story.”  
“Just push me.”  
“You’ll be fine.”  
“Don’t tell me how I’ll feel. You’ve no idea how I feel. You don’t have to push a tennis ball out of your nose.”  
“Wahoo, don’t kill the father of your twins, Jules.” Tanya stood dressed next to the staircase.   
“Shut up! Get out of my way.”  
“Peace cousin, I’m here to open the door for you.”  
“We can open the door ourselves, get your damn car and drive. I want Greg by my side.”  
“Okay, okay.” Tanya got out of their way to get her car.   
“If anybody tries to stop us I’ll kill them. Sofia, do you have your weapon with you?”  
“Uhm, no.”  
“We might need it.”  
“No, we won’t. We get you into Hollywood Palms ASAP without weapons.” Maybe Sofia had to rethink her idea of becoming pregnant. If she was as harsh to Sara as Jules was to Greg, her lover might leave her and she couldn’t blame her for it. It looked like the hormones took over. 

“Honey, I’m not sure I want to be pregnant anymore.” Sofia sat down after Jules and Greg were taken into a room to get prepared for labor.   
“Why is that?”  
“Jules yelled at Greg, she wasn’t nice to him. I’m scared I might do the same to you.”  
“Probably you will.”  
“I don’t want to yell at you, that’s too…that’s not good and makes me sad.”  
“It’s not like she wants to yell at him, she can’t help it, the hormones took over. She loves him, he knows it and he isn’t mad. Neither would I be.”  
“She’s in terrible pain.”  
“She had been in pain the last days, I’m sure the knowledge it will be over soon, gives her strength. Whereupon it can take a couple of hours…is there a time line? Like she had contractions every five minutes so it will take how long until the first baby is born?”  
“No idea. Can’t be too long.”  
“Shall we call her mother?”  
“I did that already.” Tanya came with three coffee and a bag to them. The smell that came from the bag told Sofia, there were muffins inside.   
“Auntie Alison cursed, threatened her daughter with various things and will be here soon.”  
“Okay. Will you get inside and be with Jules?”  
“Me? Over my dead body! These things aren’t my world. I can stay here, I don’t mind when she snaps at me, but there’s nothing in this world that can make me go into the room and be there when she gives birth. No way!”  
“It’s a natural thing.” Sofia laughed. The face Tanya made was too funny. Reminded her a lot of Sara.   
“A birth can’t be natural when I’m involved.”  
“I take it as you don’t want children.”  
“No. Godchildren yes, my own children, no.”  
“What if your partner wants children?”  
“He can try to get pregnant or we adopt them. It’s easy for men to say, I want children, they don’t have to walk around like a whale for weeks, don’t have to stop everything that you enjoy, be in indescribable pain for hours, have contractions and press a much too big head through a way too small vagina. No, no, no! Some women might enjoy this, they’re free to have as many children as they want, I don’t want this pain or anything else. Plus I don’t want to be on a diet for ages so I don’t look pregnant for the rest of my life.  
Do you plan to get pregnant?”  
“We thought about it…now I’m not sure anymore.”  
“And this will change as soon as she sees the babies.” Sara grinned. “Sofia is so obsessed with them, when she sees them, tiny, helpless, looking for her love, she will forget all the pain and wants one herself. Or two.”  
“When mom sees them on Wednesday she’ll ask for grandchildren too.”  
“Oh god, your mother keeps asking you when you will get pregnant?” Tanya's face was filled with shock and sympathy. Thank God her mother didn't do that. Never did that.   
“She used to annoy me with this question and asking for a son-in-law. Now she asks all the time when I finally marry Sara. Forgotten are all guys, grandchildren, the only things that counts is that I keep Sara. Or Sara keeps me. I’m not supposed to mess it up.”  
“My mom-in-law loves me.” Sara smiled. “I look forward to see her soon.”  
“I was always happy when my mother-in-law was far, far away. She never liked me and now she hates me.”  
“Because of the divorce?” Sofia asked.   
“Because I cheated on my husband.”  
“Oh.”  
“Yes, oh. Not the brightest thing I did in life. Happened, I’m not proud of it but I can’t change it anymore. Now we go separate ways, it’s okay, I’m not depressed. Life will go on and there’s a reason why all those things happened.  
I’ll start all over again in Los Angeles, a new job, a new home and a new relationship when I find the right man. Even my cousin found somebody and she seemed to be the one who will never get married.”  
“She isn’t married yet.”  
“Soon. If she won’t get pregnant again I’m sure we’ll see her in white within the next eighteen months.”  
“Pregnant again? Twins should be enough. For a while.”  
Tanya laughed. “Twins should be enough for the rest of her life, but she loves kids and when she wants more, she can’t wait forever. After all, my cousin isn’t that young anymore.”  
“Thirty three.” Sofia was a little bit piqued. Their friend was five years younger than she was and was called ‘not that young anymore’. What was about herself? When she decided she wanted to get pregnant. Would she be a grandmother mother?  
Tanya grinned. “Sorry. Lets say, two children are enough, they don’t have space for more.”  
“If they move because of the kidnapper they might get a bigger place.”  
“You want them to have more kids, don’t you Sofia?”  
“I want a godchild too.”  
“What about Don? Can’t he make you a godmother?”  
“He’s like you when it comes to his own child.”  
“Very simpatico.”  
“He’s a great guy…Honey, don’t you think Don would be a great father for our child? Not that I think we can talk him into it…”  
“Does this include you’ll sleep with him?” Before Sara agreed or discussed Don as the father of their child, she wanted to know what the basic conditions were.   
“I didn’t do that when I was single and won’t do it now. He’s like a brother.”  
“A damn good looking brother you have.” Tanya grinned.   
“Hands off him.”  
“So he is the little brother? You take care of him.”  
“He’s a member of our house and I don’t like the idea he might move out one day.”   
“Sooner or later he’ll meet a woman and I doubt she’ll be happy to share his room.”  
“I know.” Sofia sighed. She hated this thought. It had crossed her mind a few times, mostly when Don was involved. His girlfriends were never impressed with his room, that he shared a house with other women. When you were over thirty, you’re supposed to live in your own apartment.   
“What does he say?”  
“He’s happy where he is and doesn’t think about moving out. Honey, do you think we should offer him more space?”  
“We did offer him your old room, it’s a little bit bigger than his and he refused. What you can offer him is, he can have the space above the garage. As a balcony or another room. There’s enough space for a kitchen with connected living room.”  
“My accountant would kill me if I tell him, I want more money. He’s still not happy, says our move to the third level was too expensive.”  
“Don would pay more rent for two rooms.”  
“Yeah…we talk about this with him when it’s time. Do you think Jules is already a mom?”  
“No.” Tanya shook her head. “Give her a little more time.”  
“If we hadn’t been on time here…could have helped her? You are a doctor…”  
“I’m a dentist, not a midwife. Could you have helped her as a former cop?”  
“Uhm…once I helped a woman who was in labor with one child and she was already a mother of four, knew what to do…so no. I'm not a big help.”  
“It’s good to know my daughter and my grandchildren are in capable hands now.” Alison stormed into the room. A few yards behind her was her husband. “Why wasn’t I informed about my daughter’s condition when she left her room?” She looked at Tanya, who didn't seem to be impressed by the firm look. Doctor Bendler was the sister of her mother, probably she was used to this looks. And Sofia guessed, she got a few of them when she was a teenager. A week.   
“Because we weren’t allowed to call you until we’re here. Don’t blame us, blame your daughter, aunt Alison.”  
“I will. In which room is she?”  
Sara and Sofia exchanged looks. Now the entertainment could start. Who would win? Jules or her mother? Both women were stubborn and it was best to keep yourself out of this. 

When the door was open and Greg appeared with a wide smile on his face, Sara knew he was the proud father of two babies.   
“She did it. The twins are there.” He pulled Sara in her arms and kissed her. “I’m so happy. So happy. I’m a dad. There are my children in the room. My twins. Healthy and absolutely cute.”  
“How is the mother of your children?”  
“She’s fine. Exhausted, happy and wants something to eat. Alison, Bryan, you can see your daughter and your grandchildren now.”  
“It’s about time, Greg. Give your mother-in-law a hug first.”  
He laughed and hugged Alison. “Jules told you, she wants only me with her. We had to respect her wish, she did all the work. And she did it great. All I did was making sure they’ll have nice bellybuttons.”  
“I’ll have a look at them. Come on, Bryan, lets see our grandchildren.”   
“Congratulations.” Tanya hugged Greg. “You must be exhausted too.”  
“A little bit.”  
“Don’t keep us hanging on, what do you have? Daughters? Sons? Both?”  
“Both. Our son arrived first and his sister followed him two minutes later. You’ll be the godmother of the girl.”  
“Okay. Is there a reason why? As I know my cousin, she has a reason for this.”  
“Yes. I quote, so don’t slap me: Tanya is a bitch, girls are likely to become bitches, she gets the girl, while Sara gets the boy. She deserves a good godchild.”  
“A bitch? Well, if somebody knows about bitches it must be the über-bitch.”  
“If somebody listen to you or Jules and doesn’t know your relationship, this person has to believe, you hate each other.”  
“No, we love each other. She’s more than a cousin and whenever I call her a bitch or something like that, I mean it in a very loving way.”  
“That’s why you’re the second godmother.”  
“Can I see my godchild?”  
“Sure, Jules will kick you out when there are too many people around. Or the nurse will.”  
“I’ve got a treat for the bitch.” Tanya chuckled and went inside the room.   
“What about you?” Greg asked Sara. “You can go inside too.”  
“No, let them have some time alone. Why don’t we go and have a coffee?”  
“Sounds good to me. Sofia is at work?”  
“Yeah, she left at seven, got picked up by Don so she didn't have to call a taxi and I’m supposed to call her now. She wants photos of the twins, the names and says, she’ll be back ASAP to see her babies.”  
“How long can you stay?”  
“I’ve to be with doctor Luria at nine, another half an hour and I’ve to leave.”  
“In this case we should get the coffee, some muffins for Jules and see her. You have to see your godchild, hold him and take photos of both of them; for your girlfriend and your therapist.”  
“True. You have to call your parents.”  
“I need to send them photos too. They come over for Christmas, booked in a motel already. Are you sure it’s okay when we stay with you?”  
“Absolutely. We talked about this, Jules and the twins are safe there. If that’s enough space for a couple of days for you…or do you want to move over to Alison’s place?”  
“They have two spare bedrooms but nobody is around. Safety is more important, Jules and the twins stay where they are and you have your godchild around.”  
“Yeah…do you have names for them?”  
“Still arguing about them. Any suggestions?”  
“Nothing embarrassing, please. Not a color, not a city and not an animal, number or a flower. An ordinary human name.”  
“We have nothing else on our mind.”  
“Good.” Sara opened the door to the cafeteria. This city had already enough children with strange names. Did those parents believe their children are special when they are named after a color? A city?   
“We should get a few coffees and muffins. Or did you guys have breakfast?”  
“No, we stayed in front of the door. I need something for Jules …as a godmother I’m supposed to give her something. And my godchild.”  
“You can do that when she’s back home. Or tomorrow when you come over and she’s desperate for some food. And your godchild has everything he needs here.”  
“How does he look?”  
“Like his mother. The same dark hair, same eyes and the same smile.”  
“And your daughter looks more like you?”  
“Yes. Crazy blonde hair and blue eyes. I’ll be busy chasing guys away in fourteen years. Or girls.”  
“You never know.”  
“Doesn’t matter. Both aren’t allowed to date until they’re eighteen, go to college and I can’t do anything to make them stay at home.”  
“Says you or says Jules?”  
“Say I and I’ll take it back as soon as they me if they can go out with whoever. I don’t think I can be a strict father.” Not like his parents, who didn’t allow him to do sports because they were too scared something might happen to him, he could get injured.   
“You’ll be a great father.”  
“Hopefully.” He paid for the coffee and the muffins. “Lets get those things to the others and you can see your godchild.”  
“Little Jules and little Greg.”  
“Yes. And mommy Jules.” He smiled. A father. He had never been happier than today. He was a father. 

While Sara was a happy visitor in hospital, Sofia was in hospital too. As a visitor but not happy. She had been at work for less than a quarter of an hour when her boss called her into his office. A new case. After three days of not hearing anything of the kidnapper another baby was gone. This time from a hospital in Los Feliz.   
Instead of laying in his little bed, baby Mario was gone. His parents noticed when they wanted to pick him up this morning to feed him. First they thought one of the nurses had taken care of their baby, when they asked ten minutes later where their baby boy was and nobody knew anything about Mario, they called the police.   
“The AMBER alert is out.” Don sighed. He was a homicide detective, but after these men killed a woman the last time, he kept the case. And after these men probably were at Greg's house, he had a personal interest in catching them.   
“Holly is working on the security cameras.”  
“Do you think we’ll have him this time?”  
“I don’t know. There are a few cameras but to be honest, the security system in this place isn’t as good as it was in Hollywood Palms. Everybody can come to the baby ward, it’s again a key card door, not many nurses are around and there are two staircases and the elevator next to the door. All three lead you downstairs into an area without cameras.”  
“This is an expensive area of the city and so poor security.”  
“We’re not in one of the top hospitals. This one is mostly for the poorer people. Poor people bring less money, means less security.”  
“Makes it easier for these guys. How do they know all those places? Okay, you can find hospitals without a problem, in most you can walk in and have a look around. But they know about the security, where cameras are and how to get in and out without anybody stopping them. And do they take the babies randomly? I understood, they have orders. So how do they know they’ll find what the customer ordered here? Maybe there isn’t a blond baby with blue eyes here when they come here. Or do they have people, who tell them, the kind of baby they’re after is here?”  
“A Latino baby. This area hasn’t such a big population of Latinos, it would have been easier in East L.A.. Then again, they only took babies from better areas of the city. Do you think the people, who order babies, care where they’re from?”  
“Some people think it’s important to have good parents in order to be a good child. The Henderson and Whitemeyer families had good jobs, made good money. They aren’t rich but average to higher average. Shirley Webster was a fitness coach, she made good money, was in great shape and the Santiagos own a supermarket. Mrs. Santiago worked in there until three weeks ago. Which gives us an idea how these people knew, she was pregnant. I talked to her and it was no secret, she’d go here to have her baby and also not, when she was due. Two days ago, when Mario was born, there was a celebration in the supermarket.” Don understood when people wanted to celebrate their new member of the family, but after the last three cases, it was smarter to celebrate only with your family and not tell the whole world about your baby.   
“You think they order first class babies? I’d like to believe all children are the same, no matter where they were born and who they parent’s are.”  
“People believe in strange things and when they pay enough money, they get whatever they order. For the right amount of money you probably get a millionaire’s baby too.”  
“Yeah.” He watched how Sofia shifted her weight. “Do you stay here?”  
“No, I can’t. I’ve to get back to the lab, with the crutches I can’t work properly. One of the night shift guys takes over, Greg has the day off and when he hears about this, he won’t leave his babies alone.”  
“Are they there?”  
“Yes. Sara sent me a message, a boy and a girl, no names at the moment. I’ll get photos later, she hasn’t seen them yet. Jules is fine and Greg is over the moon.”  
“Good to know. Will you go there after work?”  
“Yes….and then I might be a wanted woman when I steal them.”  
“You don’t have to steal them. In a few days they’ll be with you, stay in the room next to you.”  
“Yes.” Sofia smiled. “Lets try to get Mario back to his parents. And all the other babies too.” When Sofia was honest to herself, she didn’t believe in finding the babies. It wasn’t likely that the kidnapper kept them. Probably all three children were already with their new parents. Who bought them. 

“Are you still in the mood for visitors or do you prefer some time alone?” Sara came into the room. She had left Hollywood Palms to see her therapist and came back after she walked the dogs.   
“I have been waiting for you, come in.” Jules was alone, no babies, no Greg.   
“You look tired – and happy.”  
“I’m both. Have a seat.” Jules petted on the place next to her.   
“Only if you don’t want to sleep.”   
“Later.” Sara was pulled into Jules’s arms and kissed. “Thanks for being here. It meant a lot to me you were here. And even more to Greg, who needed you, needed to know, you were there.”  
“I was outside, it didn’t have any effect on you. You did all the work alone, Greg was your support.”  
“He was more my punishing ball. I wasn’t nice to him, snapped at him.”  
“You were in pain, he isn’t mad, there’s too much happiness in his life. I guess all women aren’t nice to their men when they’re in labor.”  
“Yeah…you need to see your godchild.”  
“I will.”  
“Greg should be back with them any moment.”  
“Did you make a decision about names?”  
“Yes. Your godchild’s name is Eric Thurman and his sister’s name is Jorja Aasta.”  
“The second names are rather unusual.”  
“Thurman and Aasta are Norwegian names, Greg wanted them to honor his grandparents. Thurman means protected and Aasta means love. I know you’re not a fan of unusual names, can you live with the name of your godchild?”  
“Yes, of course. Eric and Jorja are perfectly normal names and the other two sound like ordinary Norwegian names, which makes sense because of Greg’s decent. He says, Eric looks like you, he must be a very beautiful baby.”  
“Aww, aren’t you cute? Come here.” Jules pulled Sara back in her arms and kissed her again. “You don’t have to worry you might do anything wrong, Sara. You’re a sensitive woman, you will know what to do and won’t hurt them. Take them in your arms, they look fragile but they’re not. And you’ll be a great godmother.”  
“Thanks.” Sara closed her eyes and rested her head for a moment on the other woman’s shoulder. She worried. All the time. What, if she made a mistake? When she dropped the baby? When she did something stupid? Her former therapist knew about her concern, she read her like an open book and it felt good.   
The door was opened and Greg entered the room. With him a nurse, who carried a baby like he did.   
“Look Eric, your godmother is here. You can give him to Sara, she has to say hello to her godson.”  
Sara got up and took the baby carefully. Eric was asleep and didn’t wake up when he was placed in Sara’s arms. Automa-tically she supported his head and smiled. Greg had been right, he looked like Jules and he was very cute.   
“Now, Sofia will love this photo.” Greg took his camera after he handed Jorja over to Jules.   
“He’s so tiny.”  
“That what happens when you’re a twin and they are born too early. Believe me, he didn’t feel tiny the last days and especially not when I was in labor. Neither did you, young lady.” Jules kissed the head of her daughter who made a sound. “You’re awake again. Are you hungry?”  
“I’m sure she is, she had a stressful morning. Like her mother. I got you some pineapple slices and chocolate.”  
“Thanks Love. Why don’t you feed me while I feed our daughter?”  
“Sounds fair to me.”  
“Shall I wait outside?” Sara offered.   
“Why? Because I breastfeed my daughter? I’m very sure you know how a breast looks. When the twins and me are back you’ll see this more often, we live in the room next to your bedroom. Relax. Sit down, Eric will wake up soon too and wants his share. Mom said, when I was a baby, I was hungry all the time. Like when I was pregnant…oh god, I’ve to lose a couple of pounds or I will continue to look pregnant.”  
“You look amazingly beautiful.” Greg smiled. “No matter if you’re not pregnant, pregnant or just not pregnant anymore. A supermodel is ugly compared to you.”  
“This is a reason why I’ll marry this guy. He’s the best man ever, we have two beautiful children and…are you still with us, Sara?”  
“Yes…partly. Eric woke up…his eyes are beautiful…and I think he smiled…it’s impossible but it looked like it. If Sofia doesn’t steal him, I will.”  
“No you won’t.”  
“According to Tanya you’ll have a couple of more kids soon.”  
“Really? We said, we want to get married when the twins can walk. If I have another child, we have to wait again.”  
“According to her, you love children and you’re too old to wait forever. When she said this, Sofia looked like she wanted to kill her.”  
“We can do that together. Maybe we should send her back to Santa Barbara. We don’t need unfriendly people around us.”  
“No, you like her, she’s your favorite cousin.” Greg disagreed.   
“Not anymore. She makes herself very unpopular. Too old.”  
“Do we want more children?”  
“Not before the wedding. I want a honeymoon. Two weeks just for us…and the twins?”  
“A honeymoon isn’t a honeymoon when you take the children with you. You leave them with us, we take care of them. Sofia and me take these two weeks off and take them to the zoo, the forest, the beach and to national parks. You will enjoy playing in nature, without having people shouting, cars horning and planes flying over your head, Eric. You can see animals, play with them while mommy and daddy are on a beach.” Was it first Sofia, who seemed to be crazy about the twins, now that Sara had her godchild in her arms, she didn’t want to leave him alone.  
“Are you ready to fight with my mother?”  
“Yes! He’s my Eric.”  
“Greg, we need to work something out or we’ll find out babies in the middle of a fight.”  
“By the time we have our honeymoon, Sara and Sofia might have their own baby. Lets don’t worry about things in the future. Having a lot of people, who want to take care of Jorja and Eric is a luxury problem. We have to get you guys through hospital and back home.”  
“Mom is close to order one of the security guards to stand in front of their room all the time and let only you and me take them out. Even when a doctor wants to examine them, she wants us around. Her colleague isn’t happy with her.”  
“I like her plan, makes them safer.”  
“They are safe. There’s no way somebody can kidnap them. How much trouble did you have to get them?”  
“A lot. I was very happy to see them checking on me, coming with me to your room. Hopefully the police catches them soon and no more babies will be kidnapped.”  
Sara looked down like she was busy with Eric. She hadn’t told Greg about the new kidnapping. Sofia sent her a text when she came out of therapy. A baby boy was kidnapped in another hospital, it was only a question of time until Greg got the AMBER alert too and knew about it. 

“Hey, you’re already back.” Sofia hugged Sara. It was a little bit after seven and her lover was back home. An hour earlier than she had expected.   
“Yes, bad weather, not a lot of work and a boss who wants me to lose a little bit of my overtime. How are you?”  
“I was very frustrated when I left work, Don drove me to Hollywood Palms and since that time my mood is better. Eric and Jorja are the cutest babies I’ve ever seen. And the photo you sent me with you and Eric will get a place on our photo board. So cute.”  
“He’s adorable. I felt like taking him with me. Jorja looks so much like Greg, I hope she’ll be like him later. And I’ll buy both of them something…shall we go shopping tomorrow after work?”  
“We need to go shopping anyway, when my parents arrive we’ve to offer them more than toast and apples. After I am not allowed to work longer than eight hours, there’s enough time. You work early, don’t you?”  
“Yes. I can pick you up at the lab at half past three. We do the shopping, visit the twins and go home, prepare everything for your parents.”  
“The camping bed? That won’t take long. My mom wasn’t happy when I told her, they have to sleep on a camping bed. When she heard why, it was fine. When she sees the twins, she’ll annoy us about grandchildren.”  
“When I had Eric in my arms and he smiled at me – which he didn’t do because he’s too young, but it looked to me like he did – I wanted nothing more than a baby. I imagined a baby Sofia, a little girl with your deep blue eyes…” Sara stopped embarrassed. “I meant…”  
“You meant what you said.” Sofia pulled her lover in her arms and kissed her. “I wanted a little Sara when I had them in my arms. Of course you’re right with the argument, there are so many children in foster homes and they all deserve a good home…nevertheless I wanted a baby. Watch our child how it grows up, be with him or her when it’s time for the first steps, kindergarten, school, graduation, first love, college. The whole program. Very selfish. And such a wonderful thought.”  
“Sounds like we both made a decision today.”  
“We said we’ll wait, see how it is to have a baby around. But yes, I’m quite sure a baby is what I want. Including being pregnant. Jules was in pain, it was written all over her face the last couple of days, and at the same time, she was so happy. They kicked her, hurt her and all she felt was movements of her babies, signs of them being okay.”  
“When she held them this morning, she looked like the happiest woman I’ve ever seen. She said, having them is worth all the pain.”  
“I believe her when I see her.” Sofia lay back on the bed. What a day. An early start but it was worth leaving bed this early. The twins were there and they were healthy. “Honey?”  
“Yes?”  
“If we do this, if we become parents…we need a donor.”  
“Yes.”  
“With an anonymous donor it’s almost impossible for our child to find out, who the father is. And we’ve no idea, whose DNA we have. I don’t want to believe in bad DNA…then again, I don’t want our child to find out one day, his or her father is a serial killer. And everybody can write down he is a professor.”  
“True. Any other idea?”  
“Maybe.”  
“Maybe means yes. What is the other idea? Don?”  
“Yes. Can you imagine Don as the father of our child? I haven’t asked him, it crossed my mind again today when I saw him with the twins. He loves children and he is very good with them.”  
“And our child will know who is the father. Plus, he has also really nice blue eyes; just like you.”  
“Mine are nicer, aren’t they?”  
“Dusty beats you both.” Sara grinned. The old fight about the nicest blue eyes. “I can imagine Don as the father of our child. As long as he doesn’t want to make the baby with you the old-fashioned way.”   
“I’d never agree on that and I doubt he’d ask for that. We think about it and leave the thought until…after Christmas?”  
“Yes. It’s nothing we should rush and we shouldn’t ask him until we’re sure it’s what we want. The fun part and the responsibility. We can’t leave our child with Don or your parents and take off for a party or a beach vacation.”  
“We can take our baby with us, you can teach us how to surf, we build castles with sand and I’m sure my parents will come over often and watch their grandchild so we can have a quiet evening. I don’t need party nights anymore, a lovely restaurant, a picnic with sunset on the beach, a movie. Parties were fun, I loved dancing, since I can’t dance anymore, or it gives me too much pain, I prefer quiet nights. Plus it’s easier to talk at a quiet place…and we can go to all theme parks with our child, take the twins with us and be children ourselves. You know, the last time I visited Universal Studios, I jumped into Scooby Doo’s arms and kissed him after I told him, I love him.”  
“Does it scare me that I can imagine you doing this? Should it worry me to hear those words from the woman I love? I want a baby with?” Sara chuckled.   
“No. It shows you, I’ll be a great mom and play a lot with our child.”  
“Our very special child…it will be a hard time when you’re pregnant…nine months no sex.”  
“What?” Sofia sat up and looked stunned at her girlfriend. “In what world are you living? No sex during pregnancy. If we don’t have sex during my pregnancy I will never become pregnant. Sex is healthy and good when you’re pregnant. No sex. You have strange ideas and should consult your therapist about it…or even better, your former therapist. I’m very sure she had sex while she was pregnant.”  
“This really shocked you, didn’t it?” Sara had problems to stay serious.   
“Yes! Please tell me, you weren’t serious.”  
“I’m not serious.”   
“Thanks.” Sofia exhaled released. “No sex. That’s mean punishment.”   
“Maybe I can make up with some dinner. Do you want chocolate ice cream?”  
“How about some make up sex?”  
“I might consider this later. For now I leave you and start cooking.”  
“She leaves me for food…prefers to cook instead of making love to me…I don’t need Sigmund Freud to know, we’ve a serious relationship issue. And ice cream isn’t a solution for it.” Sofia sighed and watched Sara leaving the room laughing. No sex, no make up sex…a cold shower? Brrr. 

After dinner they went back into their room. With her crutches, Sofia didn’t feel like walking down into the living room and up again.   
“Tell me about the case.” Sara poured some wine into Sofia’s glass.   
“The boy’s name is Mario, he is two days old. He disappeared between eight-twenty and eight-thirty. We checked on the security cameras, there was the same man like in Hollywood Palms. Again, he wore a doctor’s dress and again, he seemed to know where all the cameras are. We see the backside of his head, his back, nothing of his face.”  
“Where did he go with Mario?”  
“To the staircase. There’re no cameras, we lost him there.”  
“No cameras?”  
“Low budget hospital. The only one for the poor people in Los Feliz. Why Mario’s parents chose this hospital we’re not sure. They own a shop, have the money for a better hospital. It’s the closest one to their home, the next one is a mile further away.”  
“The kidnapper knows the Hollywood Palms and this one. Are there any connections? Of the hospitals?”  
“No. We checked on services, nothing popped out. Same with employees.”  
“Any traces?”  
“The chloroform tissue was in a garbage can. This makes us believe, he left through a door of the backside of the building. No camera, no security. You know what I asked myself?”  
“What?”  
“How comes the demand for babies is this high at the moment? Are babies the new most wanted Christmas gift? And why do they kidnap the babies here? I can’t recall anything like this ever happened before in Los Angeles.” There were so many crazy things going on in the world, a lot of them were also here, Sofia wouldn’t be too surprised when babies were the newest trend for rich people.   
“Neither can I. My guess is, the babies are somewhere in California or a close-by state. It’s getting more and more complicated to come into the States, if you kidnap a baby in South America and take it here, you need a passport for it. This costs a lot of money. When you kidnap them here, you take them to another state, no border control.”  
“True. Greg asked to have the days off until the twins and Jules are in hospital. He wants to be with them as much as possible. The more time they spend with their parents, the safer they are.” She was sure, they wouldn’t see Greg today. He’d be with Jules as long as he was allowed to be there and go straight back to her in the morning.   
“How did they handle the news?” Sara never mentioned the kidnapped baby, didn’t want to ruin the happiness of her friends.   
“With a shock. After a few days without a kidnapped baby, they hoped these people were gone.”  
“They won’t stay here forever. Sooner or later the air gets too thin for them and they move to another city.”  
“Before that we’ve to catch them. Otherwise more babies will disappear and more women might have to die because they want the baby…and when I can put my prosthesis on again, I can work like I should. Being at the scene for only a few minutes and be the rest of the day in the lab, isn’t my cup of tea. And I’m much better in the fields.”  
“How does your wound look?”  
“As far as I can see good. I don’t feel any pain and will try to walk a few minutes with the prosthesis tomorrow. When I can make it around the reservoir without problems I’m as good as new. Do you want to join me?”  
“Absolutely. After shopping and hospital.”  
“The only good thing about it is, I have more time for you. From Wednesday on I’ll work like my colleagues, means there will be more than ten hours probably.”  
“Three shifts work on these cases, you can come home after nine or ten hours. Or is there so much evidence to work with?”  
“No.” Sofia grumbled frustrated. “These bastards leave barely any evidence. Sometimes I feel like they are cops – or one of them and he told the rest how to leave barely any traces for us behind. A cop, a doctor, an IT man, what a great team.”  
“It’s always the same man who kidnaps the babies. He must be the type of man, who blends in easily. Like some of the most famous serial killer. Your friendly neighbor, who has a dark secret, you have no clue of.”  
“A doctor who worked both hospitals a long time ago, maybe under different names. An IT man, who gets into the security system, finds out where its safe to walk and a cop, who knows a lot about evidence. All three of them with connections to Asia. The web page is from China, our IT people found so much out. One of them might be from China…we have to check on cops from China. The doctor is Caucasian. And the IT person is impossible to check. We can look who has a work permission, a green card but there will be so many hits, all over the country. All you have to do is register yourself in New York, move over to L.A. and don’t mention it anywhere.”  
“And the doctor has no record. Otherwise one of the programs had recognized him.”  
“All we have is the back of his head and a description from Tanya. If it was the same man, we can’t say this for sure.”  
“You can measure certain things, like the distance between his ears. Of course there’ll be thousands of hits.”  
“Exactly. We looked at traffic cameras in this area, there were various black vans, white vans, all without writing on them. By now they might drive in a red, blue or pink van or in a car. Each time these guys strike, they leave less and less evidence behind.”  
“They learn. Most criminals got smarter and smarter. They learn from TV programs, books and the internet. Those crime shows in TV might be interested, but sometimes they’re like education program for the wrong group of people.”  
“Yeah…a lot of things aren’t real, but they make criminals more aware of what is possible to catch them. Do you remember when we had the reality TV people following us in Vegas?”  
“Yes. You got into their faces.”  
“Jerks didn’t deserve anything else. They invaded the privacy of this poor woman. She had been through enough, didn’t need to put up with the camera and stupid comments. I felt like strangling them with my bare hands.”  
“Only to open your blouse for them later.”  
“What?”  
“When you and Brass talked to the suspect, you opened one button to give this guy a better view, make him talk. This disappointed me a little bit, Sofia. I had always picked you as a person, who works with her brain and not her breasts. Then again, it explains…I forgot her name again. Blow job actress alley cat.”  
“Ellen. We didn’t want to mention her name anymore. It was a stupid thing to do, both Ellen and the button. Didn’t work out – both again. And I won’t do it again.”  
“Both? Or just one of them?”  
“Make an educated guess.” The blonde pulled the other woman closer and kissed her hard. Such a stupid question wasn’t worth the energy to answer it.   
“Both. I saw her.”  
“Who? Ellen?”  
“Yes. Sunday morning on Sunset. She looked like she had a long night and wasn’t alone. Red was the taste of the night.”  
“I hope I won’t see her again.”  
“Sooner or later when we go out we might see her.”  
“She’ll have fun with my leg.”  
“One stupid comment about your leg and I break her nose in way no doctor can correct.”  
“My heroine.” Sofia placed her head on Sara’s shoulder. “Whatever I did to deserve you, I’m glad I did it. You’re the best thing that ever happened to me…and I met you twice in my life. Do you wonder sometimes why we didn’t fall for each other in Vegas? How it’s possible we were barely friends there and now, you’re my life. It’s crazy…like…I don’t know.” It was impossible to explain.   
“We weren’t ready for each other. You were dating men, I was with Grissom.”  
“Yeah…I made you forget men. It was a long and hard way, a lot of work but definitely worth the effort.”  
“It took a long time until my therapist could talk me into giving you a try.” Sara answered sweetly.   
“What? Jules talked you into this? You didn’t want to be with me? She manipulated you?” This was new for Sofia.   
“She opened my eyes.”  
“How?”  
“I wasn’t sure…because you’re a woman and if that’s right for me…she helped me to realize, it doesn’t matter what sex your partner has, it’s how your partner feels, does and how you feel and react to this person. That I reacted positive to you was obvious, when we shared a bed I felt safe, could sleep.”  
“Looks like I have to buy Jules a flower bouquet. And a ton of chocolate.” The therapist did more than helping Sara with her PTSD, she was also a help in relationship questions. A very good help.   
“I told you, she’s the best therapist. She kicked in your door to make sure, you don’t do anything stupid.” Sara wished she had seen this. It seemed so much not like Jules to kick in doors, she was way too relaxed to do something like this. But she did it, Sara saw the door. And heard the story from Sofia and Don.   
“Yeah…Rambo is a nothing compared to her. When do you think can she and the twins leave Hollywood Palms?”  
“Two or three days? It was a normal birth, there aren’t any reason for her to stay in longer. She and your parents could arrive at the same time.” Make the house a full house and get them into logistic problems. The next days it would be hard to have any kind of privacy in this story.   
“This fast? Did she say something?”  
“No. I think they wait until the doctors tell them they can leave. Most women leave after two days I’ve read, if you can stay longer when you have twins is out of my knowledge. The longer she stay in hospital, the more work is taken off her hands – and the bigger the fear, the twins could get kidnapped.” Which was the biggest reason why they wanted them back home soon. Make sure, they were all three safe.   
“Exactly. They want to have them safe ASAP.”  
“So, we might have babies here in two nights.”  
“Yes. We have to have a baby party. On Thursday.”  
“I’ve Wednesday and Thursday off, can organize something.” Although the thought of having Jules’s friend around wasn’t something she enjoyed. But she couldn’t ask them to stay away, not to come and see Jules and the twins.   
“If we’ve closed the case by then, I’ll have a day off too. A sleep in with you…the last one was very nice.”  
“I barely remember it…can you help me out?” Sara smirked coy.   
“My pleasure.” Sofia rolled on top of her lover and kissed her softly. They could repeat what they did the last time they could sleep in, she was the last person, who would complain about it. 

14th of December

“Are you sure you can walk with your prosthesis the whole day?” Sara looked concerned at Sofia. Her girlfriend had put on her prosthesis and seemed to be without problems. Yesterday evening they walked around the reservoir, on their way back Sofia felt a light pain. Nothing to worry, but she didn’t walk and felt the way she used to. A step back and maybe a sign she should use the crutches a few more days.   
“Yes.”  
“Take the crutches with you, just in case. Please.”  
“Okay.”  
“Will you use them when you’re in pain?”  
“Yes.”  
“Thanks.” Sara pulled Sofia in her arms and kissed her. “If you don’t want your parents to see you using crutches, change back to prosthesis when you come home, sit in the living room and they won’t notice.”  
“You know my parents, they’ll see right away when something is wrong.”  
“True.”  
“I’ll give it a try. Are you fine with them alone?”  
“Of course. Since that one night we drove to Las Vegas to see them for the first time, I’ve no problems with your parents. Your mother loves me, doesn’t want to shoot me and your dad is also a big fan. No need to worry. Will you try to be back home in time? Means, will we have dinner with you?”  
“I do my best.”  
“Good. Remember, Eric and Jorja come home today if there’re no complications. You can kiss them goodnight when you’re here in time. And be a part of their first evening here, watch them sleep in their beds.” After only two days Jules and Greg decided they wanted to leave the hospital and stay at home. There hadn’t been an incident, nobody saw a person, who didn’t belong to the baby ward, but better safe than sorry.   
“You don’t have to lure me back home with the twins, you’ll be here, that’s all I need to know to come back ASAP. I love you and want to spend my time with you – rather than in the lab. You’re sexier than evidence.”  
“Thanks.” Sara smiled. “Keep me posted about your day.”  
“If we get a new case, I send you a text. Or shall I ask my boss if he wants you as a CSI for a day? We both work together, like we did in the beginning. Both CSI, both in the lab. I can make a vase talk to us again.”  
“That was very impressive.”  
“Not one of your favorite cases, wasn’t it?”  
“No. I got attacked and…the whole place reminded me too much of my mother. Grissom was a help.”  
“He left you alone and walked away with the security man. Not a smart thing to do.”  
“Nobody thought Adam would attack me.”  
“You’ve to be cautious all the time. If you ever decide to work as a CSI again and we work together, I won’t leave you anywhere – expect when there’s an officer with you. Or any other cop.”  
“I won’t become a CSI anymore, this time is over. It’s great to talk with you about your work, think about solutions for problems, but I’m happy as a ranger. All this violence, the sad news you have to bring to people, looking into their desperate eyes, it’s nothing I want anymore. Vegas was a great time, it was a lot of fun and I want to keep the good memory.”  
“I respect your decision and know, your job makes you happy. That’s all what counts. Nevertheless, sometimes I dream of us working together – mostly because this way we’re together all the time. When we have different shifts we don’t see each other for fourteen hours, an eternity and then I want you back as a CSI, work by my side.”  
“Or you become a ranger.”  
“With my leg I end up on a desk, not my world. We stay in our jobs and try to be back home in time. This way we can spend more time together.”  
“Yes. You can do the first step today, be back for dinner with your parents.”  
“And my girlfriend.” The most important part of being back home in time was spending time with Sara. Everything else came second. 

When Sara came back with the dogs from their walk around the reservoir it wasn’t ten in the morning and a car from Las Vegas parked in front of their house. Her parents-in-law were early.   
“We’ve got visitors, guys. Marie and Mark are back.” Knowing Tony was at home, Sofia’s parents had to be inside. When she opened the door, the dogs stormed straight into the living room, barking happily.   
“Scooby, get off my lap!”   
“Rantanplan, you’re not a Jack Russel.”   
Sara chuckled. Yes, the dogs found Mark and Marie. Knowing, they always brought them some treats, the greeting was big and full of sloppy kisses.   
“You’re just as bad behaved as your mommy. Sit down, now!”   
“Marie, they’re happy to see you, it’s hard to behave when you’re over the moon.” Sara stepped into the living room.   
“Can be happy and sit. Tomboys.” Maria hugged Sara. “How are you, Darling?”  
“I’m fine, thanks. What about you?”  
“Happy to be here.”  
“You are early.”  
“Somebody insisted on leaving at half past five in the morning.” Mark pulled Sara in his arms. “Your mother-in-law is crazy, she couldn’t wait a minute longer. My plan was to have breakfast and come over for lunch around one, no, she had to be here at ten.”  
“It’s good to have you here. How was the drive?”  
“Good. We arrived here just after rush-hour. The area around the Hollywood Boulevard is open again. It looks sad, this big hole within the buildings.”  
“Yes it does.” Sara sat down. There was no need to offer coffee to her guests, they had steaming cups in front of them. They knew where everything was and helped themselves to coffee. “They plan to rebuild it, with a memorial. Until this part of the Hollywood Boulevard will look like any other part, it will take some time. Two or three years. Most of the buildings around the Hollywood and Highland Center are renovated and opened their businesses again. The Oscar night has to go somewhere else. As far as I know they might move back to the Walt Disney Hall in town.”  
“A beautiful building. The tourists are also back?”  
“Yes.”  
“And how are you and Sofia?”  
“Sofia is busy, she works the case with the baby kidnapper.”  
“I heard about this, a terrible thing. There’s no evidence that helps to catch these guys?”  
“No, not yet.”  
“How does Greg hold it up?”  
“He took the last three days off to be with Jules. They’re parents of a boy and a girl since Monday morning and come back today. Two days are a short time, but they don’t feel comfortable in hospital. The first baby disappeared from Hollywood Palms.”  
“I’m sure they improved their security.”  
“They did, yes. But last Friday there was a toy that nobody ordered delivered to Greg’s house. The description of the delivery man, Jules’s cousin Tanya gave the police, matches one of the kidnapper and he seemed to be interested in her belly. That’s why they stay here, it’s safer than in their house. Jules’s cousin is there the whole time, but that doesn’t help when there are two or three men with guns.”  
“They’ll be safe here. I’ve my weapon with me.”  
“Oh no, not again, Marie.” Mark sighed.   
Sara bit her lips. This could be her reaction to Sofia, who also had her weapon with her all the time. You really didn’t need a DNA test to know, Marie and Sofia were mother and daughter. They were so much alike.   
“I’m a police captain, Mark.”  
“You’re off duty.”  
“Having your gun with you can always be helpful. If those men appear here, I can shoot them first and call LAPD afterwards.”  
“One more year and you’re retired, I really hope you leave your gun with your badge at the department.”  
“I take both home. I worked hard for and with them, they’ll stay with me.”  
Mark shook his head and rolled his eyes. “Does Sofia keep her police things?”  
“Yes. Like mother like daughter.”  
“Horrible. Did she take her gun with her on the trip to the Dominican Republic?”  
“Not that I know of it – and I checked her suitcase.”  
“These Curtis woman are a nightmare when it comes to their guns. Are you willing to take up with it for the rest of your life, Sara?”  
“Yeah, I’ll give it a try. It’s possible, you’re married to one for over forty years.”  
“And it was a…” Marie’s elbow got into his ribcage and made Mark gasped. “…a wonderful time.”  
“You stop talking or do you want Sara to leave our daughter? Stupid man. How is our daughter? Aside from work? Is everything all right with her leg?”  
A catch-22. When Sara told them everything was fine, her lie probably was discovered by the end of a day. When she told them the truth, she might get in trouble with Sofia. She needed a diplomatic answer, not a lie and not the entire truth.   
“The prosthesis fits, it makes her life easier, she tries to make the best out of it, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. The good thing is, she hasn’t given up herself and still has a lot of plans for her life.”  
“And she sees her doctor regularly?”  
“Yes. All of them.”  
“Good. If she had any problems you wouldn’t tell us, would you?”  
“No.” Sara smiled. “Sofia has to tell you herself.”  
“Which she won’t unless we find out and ask her. It’s okay, Sara. We’ll see when anything is wrong with our baby… talking about babies. When will the twins come home?”  
“Any time after lunch.”  
“Is their room prepared?”  
“Yes. The beds are ready, the couch for Jules and Greg has fresh sheets, there’s a mountain of diapers, the kitchen is filled up with baby milk and healthy food for the mother. Two mobiles are over the beds, stuffed animals in the beds, a baby bathtub, a changing table and whatever else you need to keep twins for a couple of days comfortable, is all upstairs.”  
“A baby buggy?”  
“In the garage, a big one for twins.”  
“The forecast said there’ll be sunshine the next days, maybe we can take the babies out for a walk and give Jules some time off. I know as a mother you want your babies around you all the time, want to make sure they’re fine, but you’re also desperate for a few quiet minutes to catch some sleep or take care of yourself. Sofia was very demanding, always wanted her mother around and I was happy to be with her. Nevertheless I was happy when I had a few minutes alone and she was with her father or grandmother.”  
“I’m sure she’ll appreciate it when you take them out for a walk and she can take a deep breath.”  
“If you start to ask Sara of she and Sofia want children too, I’ll slap you.” Mark threatened his wife. “You won’t start this topic, do you understand me?”  
“How do you talk to me?”  
“They way you understand me.”  
“I haven’t said a word.”  
“I’m married to you, I know you and I can read your mind. It was one of the next questions. Leave it. It’s none of your business. Sara, if she asks you this or anything related to this topic, ignore her.”  
“Don’t tell her what to do!”  
“Why don’t I get myself a coffee and you discuss this yourself?” Sara grinned and got up. It was good to have them both here. Hopefully Sofia would be back soon.

Sofia wasn’t back home yet. But she was close to her own house, less than a mile away. West of the Silver Lake reservoir was her new crime scene. A white building, red roof, a garage and a little garden around the house. One side faced the reservoir, the other the hill and some green bushes. A nice place, the blonde had been here before, walked her dogs here.   
It wasn’t much different from the second crime scene, single family house and the kidnapper got into the house through the garden. This time the door wasn’t left open, they cut a hole in it and opened the door this way. Sofia stood in the living room, let her eyes run slowly over the room, got the imagine in her head.   
White sofa, a white armchair, white cabinets, a white dining table with four white chairs, white stone floor. White curtains, TV and stereo also held in white and a white carpet. Not a warm house, the white color without any other colors made her feel a little bit like in hospital. Only the shattered glass on the floor destroyed the perfect picture.   
“I’ve got a picture of Annabelle.” Don handed her a photo of a baby. “She was born a week ago.”  
“In which hospital?”  
“Hollywood Palms.”  
“Do you think they waited until the parents were back home because the new security of the hospital or was it their plan from the beginning to kidnap Annabelle here?”  
“I don’t think they planed to kidnap from the same place twice."  
"Five babies, Don. Parents start to buy guns to protect their children and yesterday a man ended up in hospital because a young dad thought, he looked strange at his baby.”  
“I know. People are aware of the danger but these men manage to kidnap more and more babies.”  
“How did they get Annabelle?”  
“Her father left her in the kitchen for a minute. The same story like with the Hendersons. He went to toilet and this minute was all the kidnapper needed. They cut the hole in the glass door, opened it, took the child and were gone. When the father came down, he rushed through the house, outside, didn’t see anything. One or two minutes top for the whole show.”  
“They must have been around, watch the house, the man. One close to the door, one at a place where he could see when the father goes upstairs, one in the getaway car. I go and knock on the neighbor’s doors, this time they used the street in front of the house, no neighbor’s garden.”  
“I start here, Brandon talks to the Peevers and starts with the kitchen.”  
“Does Greg know about this case?”  
“I sent Sara a text, I doubt she told him. They’ll take the twins home today.” And as soon as the AMBER alert was out, he’d know about their new case. Off duty or not, he got those alerts on his cell phone.   
“Kyle and Lynn talked to their colleagues, there’ll be more police around our home as long as they live with us. No guarantee but it makes it more difficult in case these guys have still an eye on Jules.”  
“Like my mother will make it difficult for them to get into the house.”  
“Right, my favorite captain will take care of them. The AMBER is out, lets get more to catch these guys.”  
“Good luck.” They needed it.   
“Likewise.”   
She waited until Don was gone and turned back to the glass door. Time to get all the shattered glass into an evidence bag and then she could work on the door. When the kidnapper cut the hole in it, he might have left anything behind. No fingerprints, he was too smart for such a stupid mistake. All the times he wore gloves, he would have done the same today. No, she hoped to find some soil, that helped them to find out, where he were before. Even when they had nothing more than an area of the size of – lets say WeHo with almost two square miles – it was better than nothing.   
No blood. Bugger. A tiny drop of blood could have told her so much about the kidnapper. It was so easy to cut yourself when you cut glass, broke glass. Why was this bastard so damn careful? Or was he just lucky? No, you couldn’t be lucky over such a long period of time. He knew what he was doing. And he knew a lot about his victims. He knew the father was alone with the baby. How did he know? Did he observe the house? Why did he know here lived a baby? Did he follow them on the street? Sofia didn’t believe all victims were picked randomly. They must have a connection, one they hadn’t found yet. It wasn’t their gynecologist, they had checked that. All women had different doctors, the substitute doctor was different, all other doctors weren’t the same. They checked on sport groups, postmen, supermarkets, cable men, everything.   
Who do you go to regularly? Hollywood, Hollywood Hills, Silver Lake, Los Feliz. Four areas of Los Angeles, all four on the west side of the city, all four areas were count to the better areas, what did connect them? The freeway. The Santa Monica Mountains. The Hollywood Sign. What else? Five women from those areas must have been at the same place to catch the eyes of the kidnapper. Have to be obviously pregnant.   
And why did they know about the security cameras? One of them had to be in the hospitals, had to be there with enough time to learn about the security. Not only the cameras, the keycard, the best ways out. No doctor worked in both hospitals. A nurse? Did she tell her husband about the security? Did she cut out the baby? Whoever killed the woman knew what he did, knew how to keep the baby alive, that was the result of the medical examination. A surgeon. A good one. With knowledge in gynecology. She had to talk to doctor Bendler. The best surgeon in L.A. might be able to give her a few new inputs. Or ideas. How difficult it was to cut out a baby on the streets without having it injured.   
Back to her scene. The glass was in the evidence bag and she could continue with the door now. One little mistake. Please, let them made just one tiny mistake and let her find this mistake to make an end to these kidnapping series. It was almost Christmas, if that count somehow. Parents were supposed to look forward to their first Christmas with their baby, not worry the whole time. If there was a God or justice, let them close this case soon. 

“Hey Sweetheart, everything all right?” Sara answered her cell phone. She had just finished lunch with Sofia’s parents, who went out in the garden with thick blankets for a little afternoon nap in the sun.   
“I’m in Silver Lake.”  
“Are you coming back home? Did anything happen?”  
“No, I’m working here, west of the reservoir. We’ve a new case here.”  
“I got the AMBER alert. The kidnapper were in Silver Lake.” And she thought it might be Sofia's case. Her lover was back on full duty, Greg was at home, it had to be her or her colleague from night on overtime.   
“Less than a mile away from home. From the second story of the building I can see our home.”  
“Shit.”  
“Do me a favor, when Jules and Greg come home, try not to tell them where my scene is, Greg has the AMBER alert, he will know the basic information. Don’t tell him it’s so close to home…and actually only a few blocks from his home away.”  
“The toy delivery boy was the kidnapper, he checked them out.”  
“It’s more and more likely.”  
“We’ll take care of Jules and the twins.”  
“No walks around the town alone.”  
“Your mother plans to take the twins out to give Jules some quiet time. No need to tell you, she packed her gun.”  
“Of course she did, you can’t travel without gun, you never know when you need one. Like now.”  
Despite the bad news Sara had to smile. Like mother like daughter, Mark was right. The Curtis women were the same. And she loved her woman anyway. Even when they had holidays with packed weapons.   
“You sound like your mother.”  
“Thanks. How are they? Did they just arrived?”  
“They’re here since ten, Mark was forced to leave at half past five, have early breakfast in order to be here ASAP.”  
“Where are they now?”  
“In the garden, having a little nap in the sun.”  
“Enjoy the quiet time before they’re awake. And tell my mom, I don’t want her at my crime scene, she isn’t with the LAPD and on holidays.”  
“Great, I get the hard job, the one that will get me into trouble.”  
“Sorry.”  
“It’s okay. Is there anything I can do to help you?”  
“Make sure our twins are safe, I worry a lot about them.”  
“Absolutely.”  
“Good. I’ve to go back to work, see you tonight, I can’t promise I make it home in time for dinner.”  
“Love you anyway.”  
“Love you too. Later Honey.”  
“Later Babe.” Sara ended the call. Another baby. So close to her own home. And Sofia didn’t sound like she was about to get the kidnapper soon, like she had a trace, that helped them. The men didn’t make big mistakes, the small ones they made so far weren’t enough to get them caught.   
“Bad news?” Tanya came into the living room.   
“Another baby was kidnapped.”  
“I got the AMBER.”  
“Less than a mile away from here, only a couple of blocks away from Jules’s place.”  
“Shit! Shit! Shit! They’ll get crazy when they hear this.”  
“The plan is not to let them know – as long as this is possible.”  
“Until they read the newspaper tomorrow morning.” Tanya sat down and pushed her long black hair out of her face. “They’re safe here. The problem is when she wants to go for a walk with them. We can’t let her walk around alone.”  
“No…for how long will you stay?”  
“I looked at a few apartments the last days and should get one within the next two weeks, probably to the first of January. Same with work, I can work as a maternity cover for a dentist in WeHo, that gives me enough time to think if I want my own dentist surgery or I work with somebody together. An own surgery has always been a dream of me but it costs a lot of money. With the divorce coming up it’s difficult to calculate …to get back to Jules and the twins, I’ll be around for another two weeks – if you don’t kick me out of the house.”  
“We won’t kick you out, we told you, you can stay as long as you’re okay with the couch here.”  
“I’m fine. The only things that sucks is, you can’t use your living room the way you’re supposed to when I sleep here.”  
“The alternative is you get yourself a mattress up in the gym, like we did for Sofia’s parents.”  
“That might be a better place, otherwise people sneak around in the early morning and late evening, trying not to wake me up. And my stuff is up there anyway.”  
“Move upstairs if you want. Have you been to Jules’s place?”  
“Yesterday to water the plants. Do you think they watch the house?”  
“I don’t know. You opened the door when they delivered the toy, but they must have seen Jules a couple of times, must know there lives a highly pregnant woman, who could be due every day. Now Jules wasn’t there for almost a week, couldn’t be seen outside for this time. They might believe she delivered and is about to come home.”  
“Which is partly right.”  
“Yeah.”  
“Could it be they sit in front of hospitals and watch when women with babies leave? Then follow them home and kidnap the babies.”  
“It’s a possibility but they seemed to know the area so well and seemed to be so prepared and aware of the neighborhood. Finding these things out in only a couple of days, or in the last case in five days, is hard work. And a risk.”  
“Like it’s a risk to walk into a hospital and kidnap a child. They don’t seem to bother about risks.”  
“They are very good organized and keep the risk down this way.”  
“Whatever their plans for Jules are or were, they won’t get our godchildren. They show up here and I kill them with my bare hands if they come close to Jorja and Eric.”  
“Our babies are safe here and we won’t take them out for a walk alone, stay on busy roads.”  
“Having your parents-in-law over adds some security.” Tanya leant back and look out of the window. The more people stay in the house, the safer it was for the twins. 

“Coffee?” Don handed Sofia a coffee to go. He found the blonde in the garden, working on how the kidnapper left the premises. The way to the neighbors seemed to be impossible, high walls and a fence made it difficult to vanish there. From where they stood now the left side was blocked by the garage, which left the left side. A small and only hip high gate was all that stood between the garden and the street.   
“Thanks.”   
“Is this their way out?”  
“Probably. I looked for fingerprints on the gate, tried to get a boot print but the stone surface makes it impossible to get anything.”  
“What about the chloroform tissue?”  
“Not in the garbage cans here. Did the neighbors see anything?”  
“No. No van, not in white, black or any other color. Also no car.”  
“I sent the fingerprints to the lab and all prints we have are from the family. It’s not likely we find something, they wore gloves the last times.”  
“Did you find anything so far?”  
“Only the glass. I checked the floor in the living room, nothing. No prints but it was a dry night and when Annabelle was kidnapped, it was ten in the morning, the sun shone on the stones and the grass, they could walk inside with dry shoes. What did the father say?” Sofia hadn’t talked to the man.  
“The father said, he saw a van black drive by around eight this morning, slowly, like they checked something out or looked for something. And he thinks he saw the same van two days ago when he carried out the garbage.”  
“Eight in the morning…where was his wife?”  
“She left at seven thirty every morning, works in a insurance company downtown.”  
“One week after she gave birth?” Weren’t women supposed to stay at home for a certain time after the birth? Was it legal to go back to work this soon?  
“She started Monday, he’s supposed to stay at home, take care of the baby.”  
“Yeah, that’s okay but…she delivered on what? Tuesday? Wednesday? And goes back to work on Monday? That’s hardcore.”  
“In my eyes it’s crazy and I wonder what boss allows his employee to do something like that.”  
“Tuesday night, a one hour delivery, fast, easy and she saw no reason to stay at home any longer. He’s here, she makes the better money, her job is mostly sitting, no heavy lifting and at twelve she comes back home.”  
“Okay. But still. Wow. I don’t think I could do that.”  
“I don’t think Sara would let you do that. The thing is, the Henderson baby was also kidnapped when only one parent was at home. Our kidnapper must know who works when. And that there are no cameras around.”  
“How can they be this good informed about everything? Is it only watching? And look at this street, when you park your car here, stay in there for a while, watch a house, people notice you. It’s not a busy street, there are no hidden places around.”  
“The bushes across the streets?”  
“Did you look at them? All those thorns, nobody goes in there, stays in there. Too painful. When you want to watch the road from above, you have to live in one of the houses, you can’t see anything from the road. When I look up the hill, I count three rows of houses before I can see a road again. Means, they must have been there, watch this house and there are also a lot of buildings.   
I will get up the hill, check on the road if I can find anything, ask people if they saw a van or anybody staying around for a longer time, watching something. But how did they know the father leaves the kitchen? The kitchen window is to the front, you can look inside from the street but you have to stop and stare to see anything clearly. Then you have to get into the garden, or the other one has to get out of the garden and into a car. Did Mister Peevers say anything about a car he heard when he was upstairs?”  
“No. The road goes down, the car might have been rolling.”  
“It’s a possibility.”  
“Did Brandon find anything inside?” Because Greg was with Jules Sofia got another colleague to work the case with her.   
“No, he bagged the cot, the bedding, everything. Checked the front door in case they left through it, four sets of prints. Mother, father, her parents, who were over Sunday is our guess.”  
“Doesn’t everybody leave something behind when he walks through a room? Tiny crumbs of soil from under the shoes?”  
“We haven’t found anything yet but yes, you leave more behind than you think, when you walk through a room. Brandon took some samples, found a few crumbs of whatever and a tiny stone. If these are from the kidnapper or the family we have to check. He asked them to write down when the house was cleaned the last time and where they had been since this day.”  
“Two babies in two days. How much demand can there be?”  
“I’ve no idea. Christmas is coming closer.”  
“A baby under the tree. The world gets sicker and sicker.” He shook his head. “I go and knock on the doors of the buildings above this one. Maybe those people saw something.”  
“I follow you as soon as I’m done here.”   
He stopped. “How’s your leg?”  
“All right.”  
“Really?”  
“When I put too much weight on it, I can feel a little pain, when I shift my weight for a while it’s okay. No need to worry.”  
“Take breaks and if the pain is too big, get back in the lab, use the crutches.”  
“I will. Don’t worry.” She smiled. Until she wasn’t done here, there was no way she’d go back to the lab. 

“Welcome…home.” Sara opened the door for Jules, Greg and the twins. “Where’s my baby? There he is, come to Sara Eric.” She took the boy out of Jules’s arms. “Mommy can take care of her luggage and I take you with me inside and show you around. This is an important place for you, your godmother lives here, you’re always welcome here and are supposed to stay over a few times a month.”  
“There goes my son, hold on to our daughter.”  
“My godson!” Tanya took Jorja in her arms. “How are you, Beauty? Did you miss me as much as I missed you? Now we have a lot of time for ourselves. Let me show you around, your buggy is in the living room.”  
“We didn’t even get one foot into the house and our twins are gone.”   
“Keep an eye on them, I get the luggage upstairs.” Greg kissed Jules. “Sit down, relax and enjoy your private nurses and babysitter.”  
“Thanks.” Jules followed Sara and Tanya in the living room. “Are you completely taking over?”  
“Not completely, you have to breast feed them yourself.” Tanya kissed Jorja. “Your mommy has to do a few things, doesn’t she? Oh, look at you, you’re so cute. I still don’t want my own child but I love my godchild. Who needs an own child when you have such a beautiful girl to take care of?”  
“The little boy suits you.” Marie came into the room and looked at Sara with Eric. “Hello doctor Weinberg, congra-tulation to your twins. They look happy and healthy.”  
“Hello Captain Curtis, thanks. I’m happy to have them and especially that they’re here now. I didn’t fee safe in Hollywood Palms. But I’m sorry to take your bed away.”  
“That’s okay.” Marie looked at Eric. “He looks like his mother.”  
“Eric also has my character – if you can say this after two days. Jorja is more active, the happy smile like Greg. And has his hair.”  
“Your mother is a beautiful woman with a even more beautiful character, when you’re like her, you’re a lucky boy.” Sara kissed Eric’s head. “A little sunny boy, we’ll have a lot of fun at the beach in a few years.” Eric started crying. “Hey, it’s okay, it’s fine…did I do anything wrong?” Irritated and insecure she looked at Jules.   
“No, your godchild is only hungry, wants his afternoon milk.”  
“Oh.”  
“Why don’t you give him back to me, I take care of his hunger before his sister also wants her milk and we have two crying babies.”  
“Okay. Sure…do you also want something? You can’t drink coffee, can you?”  
“No, not as long as I breast feed them. A tea is fine, thanks. Or juice. Whatever you have.”  
“Both, we prepared the house for you. Coffee for the rest?”  
“Yes, let me give you a hand.” Marie said and followed Sara in the kitchen.   
“It’s good to have you back, Jules.” Tanya sat next to her cousin and kissed her cheek.   
“Thanks. And thanks for being here.”  
“Hey, my fav cousin has twins, she needs me. To make sure the twins get all they need and keep stupid men away from them. And after I wasn’t a good cousin the last months, didn’t visit you, barely talked to you on the phone, I owe you some time.”  
“You were busy…why didn’t you tell me about the divorce?”  
“Because you were pregnant, had your own problems and there was nothing you could do. I made the mistake, didn’t need somebody to comfort me. You never liked my husband, told me it won’t work out and were right; as usually. Everything is sorted, one more appointment at court and I’m divorced. We can concentrate on important things: Jorja and Eric.”  
“They got another baby today, didn’t they?” Greg came down and joined the two women on the couch.   
“I don’t know.” What a bad lie.   
“I got the AMBER alert, a baby girl is missing since the morning. Here in Silver Lake. They’re here, they’re still kidnapping babies. I hope my boss gives me a few more days off.” He had to call his boss, had to asked even when he was sure, his wish was denied. The CSI team needed Greg, needed him to work the case, get these men. And his twins were safe here, there were people around, he knew it. Nevertheless, he wanted to be with them.   
“You are needed at work, Greg.” Marie, Sara and Mark came back with coffee and cake. “Like you said, they’re still kidnapping and all men are needed to find them. Your fiancé and babies are safe here, we take care of them. Go out, get the men and you and all young parents in L.A. don’t have to worry anymore.”  
“She’s right, Honey.” Jules took Greg’s hand. “Go and get them, that helps most. We’re safe here, have three people around us, one is a police captain, we’ll be fine. Make sure all other babies, who aren’t this lucky, can stay with their parents.”  
“Okay.”  
“You will miss then and it’s perfectly normal you want to stay longer with them.” Mark said. “I felt the same when our kids were born.”  
“Didn’t you stay at home?”  
“Yes, when Marie went back to work I stayed at home until they were six months old and could go to daycare. It’s a financial question.”  
“We bought the house, we can’t afford one of us stay at home.”  
“When will you return to work, doctor Weinberg?”  
“My office is closed until the first of February. We weren’t sure if the twins are on time or not and wanted to be sure, I have at least four weeks with them. Then my cousin needs a break, she takes over most of my clients.”  
“That’s why I go there only every two weeks if nothing happens. Now that Sam is gone I’m fine and she can use the time for somebody else or for herself.”  
“Your brother was here? You didn’t tell us.”  
“I tell you now.”  
“Like Sofia…did he bother you?”  
“First he did, then I talked to him.”  
“He talked you into it?”  
“No, I told him the place, the time and for how long we’d meet. After less than half an hour, it was over, I told him not to bother me anymore and there is no place for my past in my present and future.”  
“Do you think he understood?”  
“If not he’ll have a gun in his face again. Tony pretended to have a loaded gun in his hands and shot next to Sam when he appeared out of the blue. This TV guns can make a real sound, I believed it’s real too.”  
“So Sam isn’t a problem anymore?”  
“I talked to him on Saturday, since then he hasn’t called, hasn’t been here. No, he isn’t a problem anymore.” At least Sara wanted to believe this was true. The odds were good, her brother didn’t say he’d be back, he seemed to accept her decision.   
“Good. What else did you not tell us?”  
“A lot of, Mark, and I won’t tell you now.”  
“It was worth a try. Marie can do the interrogation later.”  
“Don’t you always tell me to leave them alone?”  
“Since when you do listen to me?”  
“I don’t.” Marie grinned.   
Jorja made some noise and got Tanya’s attention. “Hi Jorja Darling, how are you? Do you want to talk to your godmother? Yes? Come on, tell me something.” The baby made a grimace and started crying.   
“Oh, hey, hey, hey, no reason to cry, everything is all right.” Tanya got up and started walking.   
“Your godchild is hungry, no walking around will make her happy. Greg, do you have a tissue for your son’s mouth?”  
“Sure. Come here, Eric, come to daddy and he’ll clean your face.” Greg took his son and a cotton tissue to clean a little bit of milk and saliva from his mouth. “See, much better. Now you can smile again…after you burp.” He started walking around.  
“You can give Eric to me.” Sara offered. Tomorrow she had to work so she had to spend a lot of time with her little boy today. And with every minute she spend with him, she felt more comfortable around him, around his sister. When she and Sofia wanted their own baby she had to know what to do, what not to do and feel comfortable. A baby sensed when the mother or the person, who was around, was nervous and anxious, it would be nervous too. 

Sometimes a back door could be helpful. Sofia parked her car in the garage and wished she could get upstairs in her room without using the stairs. Like a teenager when she came home and tried to climb up the wall so her parents didn’t hear or see her. The ladder on her house was too high to reach it from the ground, she couldn’t get another ladder to reach it and climbing up the wall was impossible without a thick rope – like she had twenty years ago. Not to mention she had both legs back then.  
So the only way up was the front door and the staircase. Maybe her parents were in the living room and didn’t hear her. Quietly she opened the door, sneaked inside and rushed up the stairs into her bedroom where she found Sara at the desk.   
“Hey Baby.” The brunette looked up. “You look like you’re a runaway.”  
“I managed to get here without ending up in my parent’s arms.” Sofia sat on Sara’s lap and kissed her gently. Wasn’t it good to come back home, find the woman you loved there and kiss her? As a thank you for having her doing tax and paper work. “I love your arms much more.”  
“Your parents took the dogs out for a walk an hour ago.”  
“I sneaked up here for no reason?”  
“No, you sneaked up here to kiss me.”  
“Right.”  
“And give me the chance to tell you I love you.”  
“Sounds like I should sneak up here more often.” Sofia placed her head on Sara’s shoulder. “I heard a baby crying, do our sweethearts like their room?”  
“Yes. It’s small, it’s packed and it’s safe.”  
“Our house is packed. We had never so many people staying over.”  
“Tanya moved up in the gym to keep the living room free.”  
“We live with seven adults and two babies up here? Wow. What crossed my mind: should we offer my parents our room? As good hosts?”  
“We should, I thought about it too. Is it okay for you and your leg?”  
“My leg isn’t a problem, did my parents say something?”  
“No…well, they asked how you are, tried to make me tell them what you didn’t tell them and you’ll get into interrogation later.”  
“Of course.” Sofia got up. “I have a look at my babies and go down. Did you make a decision what you want for dinner?”  
“Your father prepared chicken, vegetables and rice. We can eat when they’re back.”  
“That’s the good part of having them over, dinner is prepared.” And her father was an excellent chef.   
“There are more good things about having them here, you looked forward seeing them and are happy they’re here.”  
“Of course I do – but I won’t tell them.” Sofia grinned. “Do you come with me?”  
“Give me five more minutes to finish this. Financial calculation. How much money is left for us to spend on a holiday and how much do we have to keep for the house in case something breaks down and what does your accountant wants. I also try to find out a few arguments why your accountant should let us build a second room for Don on the garage. So far I couldn’t find any good reasons – good reasons for him.”  
“Bugger, but if somebody finds them it’s you. Thanks for doing this.” It should be her job to sit over the books.   
“No problem. I live here too.”  
“You still pay rent.”  
“Like I said, I live here too and there’s no reason why I shouldn’t pay rent. It’s your house, you bought it, you pay the debt, I live here.”  
“I love you and don’t want your money.”  
“You don’t get my money, your accountant does.”  
“True.” Sofia made a grimace. Most times she had the feeling her money went straight to her accountant and whenever she wanted to do something on her house, invest some money in it, he gave her a hard time. Maybe she had to start playing lotto.   
Careful she knocked on the door to the second bedroom.   
“Come in.” Greg called.   
“Hey.” Sofia entered the room. “Hello cuties, how are you?” The twins were on the arms of their parents.   
“They’re fine, I fed them a few minutes ago and now they’re happy and can go back to sleep; hopefully. Do you want one?”  
“Both!”  
“Why don’t you start with this little lady here?” Jules handed Sofia Jorja. “So I can go to the bathroom.”  
“Sure. Hey Jorja, how are you? Oh, your hair looks like your dad’s hair on the old photo Sara showed me a couple of weeks ago. What else do you have in common with your daddy?”  
“She’s a mommy’s girl. When she cries and I take her in my arms it takes a few moments before she stops. When Jules picks her up she’s quiet right away. I can understand you, my sweet daughter, when I’m in the arms of your mommy I’m also over the moon. There’s no better place to be.”  
“Does Eric love you as much as Jules loves you?”  
“No, he’s also in love with his mother – and Sara. Maybe he has a soft spot for women, like I do. For sexy brunettes.”  
“A soft spot for sexy brunettes? That’s something I’ve too. Wait another sixteen years and we go out together and check the chicks out while we have to chase all admires away from your sister…just kidding Jorja. Equal rights for you. You can have a sexy brunette too.”  
“A male or female brunette?”  
“Whatever she wants, we don’t want to talk her into something, do we?”  
“No.”  
“Is her daddy okay with her baby girl dating girls?”  
“Depends on the girls. She has to be a doctor or law enforcement girl or comes from one a family with this occupation.”  
“Keep traditions alive.”  
“Exactly. Or, in honor of Sara, a ranger.”  
“Ranger can be very sexy too, they have a gun, a uniform and …I love my ranger.”  
“So did I.”  
“Now you have a doctor.”  
“Yeah. Your parents call Jules still doctor Weinberg. It sounds strange. Do you think we should make them call each other by their first names? We all live together.”  
“Yes, we should do that. Sara and me will offer my parents our room and move on the mattress in the gym.”  
“Oh, no more private time. Or you have to involve Tanya in your game.”  
“She doesn’t strike me like a woman who wants that – and I don’t want somebody else than Sara.”  
“Right answer, Sweetheart.” Sara came through the open door inside. “Very good. Give me my baby, Greg.” She took Eric in her arms.   
“Your baby? Have your own one, he’s my son. You had the chance to be the mother of my child, you didn’t want me, now I don’t you anymore and Eric is the son of my wonderful fiancé.”  
“My godchild. You love me, don’t you Eric?”  
“According to his daddy he does.” Sofia chuckled. “He loves hot brunettes. In a couple of years I’ll hit the clubs with your godchild and check out chicks.”  
“I doubt he wants a grandmother by his side.”  
“Grandmother?” Sofia snorted.   
“You’ll be over fifty when he’s ready to go out. A grand-mother.”  
“Your own child will need your attention.” Greg said.   
“True…your arguments are nicer than hers. Mean woman.”  
“This mean woman took care of my fiancé and the babies the whole day while you didn’t send me any details about the case.”  
“It’s your day off.”  
“Forget it, details. Did you find anything helpful?”  
“No, I found a lot of questions and no real evidence. In fact, we got almost nothing, less than at all other scenes.”  
“Are they getting better?”  
“Not this good. Something is wrong here, I’ve no idea what, it’s only a feeling…will you be back tomorrow?”  
“Yes.”  
“Good, we can use some fresh eyes. And my parents are here for Jules and the babies. Captain Curtis will take care of you, sweet little Jorja.”  
“Talking about your parents, they are back home. We can have dinner now. Are the twins fed, Greg?”  
“Yes. We can leave them in their beds.”  
“What? You want to leave them here? While we’re downstairs? What if they cry? Need us?” Sofia asked. “Why don’t we take them down with us? Let them sleep in the buggy?”  
“Because it’s quiet up here.” Jules came back. “Don’t worry, Sofia, we have the baby audio monitor with us. For now they can lie down and sleep.”  
“Okay…I come back to you later, my sweet babies. Don’t worry, you’re safe here. I leave the dogs in front of your door.”  
“If somebody tries to get into the house your dogs will let us know.” Jules smiled. She appreciated Sofia’s worries, but they had to try to stay calm and continue a normal life. When they got anxious the babies would feel it and become anxious too. 

It took Sofia only two minutes to find an excuse why she needed the twins downstairs. After they washed the dishes and tidied up the kitchen, the blonde disappeared and came back with Jorja on her arm.   
“Look who was wide awake, my little angel.”  
“Your little angel didn’t cry.”  
“No, there’s no reason to cry, she’s here, she has us and we love her.” The blonde kissed the baby.   
“When Jorja is here it’s only fair when I get Eric.” Sara smiled. “Be right back.”  
“We don’t have to take car of our own kids.” Jules noticed. “Sara and Sofia are all around them, like the nurses.”  
“We can only see them when we’re not at work, so the little time at home has to be used with them. You have to spend time with us so you don’t mind being with us when your parents are away for a weekend and you and your brother stay here.”   
“Why don’t you and Sara have your own baby?” Don entered the room.   
“Our lost son is back.” Maria jumped off her chair, hugged and kissed Don. “How are you? You look tired.”  
“Twelve hour shift, Captain. Good to see you. Hello Mark.”  
“Good evening Donald, I thought you don’t come home at all.”  
“I’m only here for a couple of minutes.”  
“You have to go back to work?”  
“No, I go over to Kyle’s place. This house is full and we need beds. You can have my room and I stay for these few days with Kyle.”  
“What? No way! You’ll stay here in your room.” Marie protested.   
“Sorry Captain, this decision is already made. Kyle and me will have some guys days with beer, bad food and cheap movies. His couch is very comfortable, I slept a couple of times there, and you can have my room, that’s better than the couch here or a mattress in the gym. Don’t worry, I come over every day to see you.”  
“We can go to a motel.”  
“What for? Mark, this is the easiest way. And you’re needed here, protect the twins.”  
“I can take them with me to work. Nobody looks for them in Angeles National Forest.” Sara came back with Eric in her arms. “You can see all different kinds of animals there, Eric. It will be fun.”  
“And you get a deer to feed him or are you starting to breastfeed him, Sara?” Jules asked amused.   
“Uhm…your mommy can come with us, you need your mobile milk bar.”  
“Get your own baby.” Don repeated. “Marie, don’t you want a grandchild?”  
When he said these words Sofia felt like slapping him. He wasn't supposed to support her parents, what if they started to annoy her and Sara for the rest of the time, they were here? What could Sofia tell them? They thought about it and needed to find a way to ask Don if he wanted to be the father? No, they had to ask him first, without the pressure of Sofia's parents knowing about the plan.   
“Absolutely. I hope the twins will make them think about babies.”  
“If you want us to give you a grandchild, you have to come over when you’re retired in fourteen months and take care of them. We both won’t stop working, the baby needs somebody to be there all the time or do you want your grandchild to end up in daycare after four weeks?”  
“No…you want us to move to L.A.?”  
“I only told you the conditions for a grandchild. Otherwise we’ll nag until we get the twins a lot and play with them.” Hah, that was a great plan. Give the pressure back to her parents.   
“You ask for a lot, daughter.”  
“You get a grandchild for it, mother.” Sofia answered sweetly back. She liked her idea. Her parents in the same city, babysitter for their child. Not that she didn’t like daycare, but for the first months she preferred to have family around her baby. Also for later when the child was in kindergarten and at school.  
“Who’ll be the mother of this child?” Jules asked.   
“Sofia. She has this great blue eyes and I’m…not the becoming pregnant type.”  
“We might have to argue about that, later.”  
“No, we don’t argue.”  
“Why not two babies? You both get pregnant.” Don suggested.  
“One is enough, makes one stay at home for six weeks or so. We can’t afford to stay at home together. And Sofia will be a great mother.” Sara smiled at her lover.   
“You’re both head over heels in love with the twins. You’d both be great mothers.”   
“You should be the father, Don.” Marie said.   
Sara and Sofia threw a short look at each other. This wasn’t the time nor the place to discuss this topic with Don. They wanted a conversation with their friend alone, only the three of them. And not half a dozen people, half a dozen different opinions.   
“Until you haven’t decided if you move to L.A. or not, nothing will happen, mother. Don’t worry about our problems, think about what you’ll do as soon as you’re retired.”  
“We will think about it.”  
“Good. And I will change the diapers of this lovely lady. You smell not very fresh, little Jorja. Lets see if I can do it or we have to call your daddy to give us a hand. Your mommy deserves to sit down a few minutes, you can keep her busy tomorrow.” Changing diapers was a good test for their own child. And a good way to end this conversation. 

15th of December

Greg’s shadows under his eyes told Sofia, her friend was waken up by his twins more than once. Twice she had been awake because she heard the babies crying and she was sure, they had cried more than twice and he, who stayed in the same room, heard it all the time. The black coffee he had was essential to get his eyes open.   
“Morning.”  
“Morning.”  
“You look terrible.” She gave him a hug. “The babies were active?”  
“Very. I guess I slept maybe three hours in total.”  
“Shit.”  
“Yes.”  
“Maybe you should sleep on the couch instead in the room. You need more sleep when you have to work.”  
“I know. But I don’t want to leave all the work to Jules.”  
“She understands and knows you need your sleep. You’re the one who brings the money home at the moment, you have to be fit. Otherwise you’re no a help. Not her and not me at work.”  
“Are we going back to the last scene today?”  
“No, we work on the evidence and the Peevers come over at ten. There are a few more questions. Until then we have to get through a few more things.”  
“What shall I do?”  
“First of all you have your coffee and then you drink another one while I prepare us some scrambled eggs and bacon for breakfast. This will wake you up a little bit more. Then we say goodbye to the twins and go to work.”  
“Why are you this awake? I’m sure you heard them too.”  
“We did. I got up with Sara, who works early today, took the dogs out, had an ice cold shower and already two cups of coffee. Plus I woke up twice and had five or six hours of sleep. Not a lot but enough.”  
“I’m sorry they keep you awake.”  
“The best training for our own child. Want some parsley in the eggs?”  
“Sure. Vitamins.”  
“Exactly dad, you’ve to set a good example for your kids later. Fruits, vegetables, milk, juice. No junk food.”  
“At the moment it doesn’t matter what I eat, they get their milk and have no clue about the rest.”  
“Your fiancé is a milk bar.”  
“That doesn’t sound sexy. Jules is very sexy. I’m not one of these men who think their woman isn’t sexy after she gave birth to a child. Seeing her this strong and powerful for my babies, see her suffer so I can be happy, makes me very proud. She glowed when she was pregnant, she continues so now she’s a mommy. Pride, love and the most amazing smile I’ve ever seen. No, I’m still in love with her. More than before.”  
“Good, everything else would be stupid.”  
“I’m not stupid, only tired.”  
“Is Jules awake?”  
“No, when I got up they were all asleep and I wanted her to get some sleep before they keep her awake for the rest of the day. And busy.”  
“It’s supposed to be a nice day, my parents can take them out later and she has some quiet time. Time for Christmas shopping, clothes shopping.”  
“Don’t remind me.” Greg rolled his eyes. “She complained nothing fits anymore. Her old clothes are too tight and the things she wore the last weeks are too big. Women always find an excuse why they have to go shopping. And then they ask you, if you think, they’re fat.”  
“Is she?”  
“Of course not!”  
“But her clothes don’t fit anymore.”  
“She put on some weight while she was pregnant, every woman does. And she didn’t lose all the weight when she delivered. No surprise. In my eyes she’s still sexy, but if she thinks, she has to lose weight, she can do it. I’m sure the twins keep her active, will make her lose some weight without going on a diet.”  
“Probably. A little bit of sport and she’ll be fine in a few weeks.”  
“Yes. Sara will take her around the reservoir every night. First only walking then jogging. Plus, you don’t start a diet when it’s almost Christmas.”  
“No, you don’t want to miss out all the sweet cookies, cakes and chocolate. The bad diet time comes later. The resolution for the new year. No sweets, no cakes, more sport, no alcohol, more vitamins. Three days later you forgot them and are back to your old life.”  
“You’re that weak? Only three days?”  
“When it comes to no sweets three days are like eternity.”  
“No coffee.”  
“No way!” Sofia grinned. Without coffee her day couldn’t start. She needed her caffeine boost in the morning to be prepared for the day. 

Nothing. Nada. No matter how often Sofia checked on the evidence, she couldn’t find a single tiny piece that gave her any conclusions about who kidnapped Annabelle. All traces she found were from the family and the chloroform tissue, that had been on every scene so far, wasn’t there. Did she have to go back and check the whole premises again? And the premises next to it.   
“Coffee?” Brandon came with two cups of coffee into her office. His long brown hair was tied back to a ponytail, a sign of he was busy and not happy.   
“Thanks. When I look at your hair you didn’t find something, did you?”  
“No, nothing. The buggy is clean, only fingerprints of the parents. The front door had prints from people, who were there the last days to visit. Honestly I’ve no idea what to tell the parents when they come here in a few minutes.”  
“Me neither. I thought of going back. There must be a chloroform tissue somewhere, they left it every time. Why would they change their pattern? It’s not like it helped us with anything.”  
“Yeah. And why did nobody see the van? I talked to a few neighbors, they are very aware of what’s going on on their street. One could tell me since when we were there, when the first police car arrived and who else stayed at home to watch us doing our job.”  
“And he didn’t see the van? Not yesterday and not three days ago?”  
“No.”  
“Strange.” Was it only a coincidence? Sofia tend not to believe in coincidence when it came to cases. “What about the soil?”  
“Trace is working on it, so far they haven’t found any soil that caught their interest. Everything belongs to the house, the premises. Did the police find anything?”  
“No. I talked to Don, they have no more witnesses, knocked on all doors, talked to all neighbors, on the same road and the next three roads up the hill if they have seen a van or a man watching the area. Nothing.”  
“And all private camera tapes we got didn’t help neither.” Brandon’s cell phone rang. “Okay, we’re coming.” He ended the call. “The Peevers are here. Lets talk to them.”  
“Explain them why we don’t have anything?”  
“There are no explanations.”  
“No, there aren’t.” Sofia sighed. This part of her job wasn’t something she enjoyed. They had to tell the parents of the little girl, there was nothing to give them some hope, nothing that indicated they could have their baby girl back. Like they couldn’t tell all the other parents good news.   
“Mrs. Peevers, Mister Peevers, have a seat.” Brandon greeted them.   
“Did you find our baby girl?” Mrs. Peevers asked.   
“No. Would you care for some coffee?” Sofia offered.   
“I don’t want coffee, I want my girl back!”  
“A black one would be nice.” Mister Peevers said.   
“I’ll be right back.” She left the room to get a coffee. A devastated woman, who started working a week after she delivered. How could a woman love her baby so much and leave it alone after only a few days? While her husband seemed not to be overly sad. Or he played his feelings down very good. Most men were raised not to show feelings, most forgot this when it came to their own baby, other managed to keep their face straight.   
With the coffee she came back and sat down.   
“Thanks.”  
“You’re welcome.”  
“What are you doing the whole day when you haven’t found out anything yet?” Mrs. Peevers asked Brandon.   
“We work on what we have. The problem is, there aren’t a lot of things to work on and what we found out so far, pointed to nowhere. We have the prints of your family and the neighbor who was over two days ago. That’s it. All fresh prints were from you and your husband.”  
“You can tell if a print is old or not?” Mister Peevers asked.  
“Yes. The kidnapper didn’t cut himself when he cut the glass, he didn’t leave a shoeprint behind, we have no evidence he was in or around your house. Our lab is working on the soil we found in the house, so far it all belonged to your premises.”  
“How do you plan to get our baby back to us when you have nothing?” Mrs. Peevers sobbed.   
“We hope we find something.”  
“When?”  
“Hopefully soon. Mister Peevers, we need to ask you about the van again. We talked to all your neighbors, one could give us a really good enumeration about what vehicles drove across the road, who was at home and when a person walked by. He didn’t see the van, not yesterday and not three days ago.”  
“Then he must have missed it. Used the bathroom at this time …like I did yesterday…they must have seen me…how could they see me?”  
Another question they couldn’t answer. Sofia had checked on the surroundings, she didn’t find a place from where you could watch the kitchen unseen. All possible angles didn’t work out and when she tried to climb into the bushes, thorns stopped her before she managed to get half inside.   
Her cell phone rang.   
“Excuse me.” It showed Don’s number. Stepping out of the room she answered the call. “Hey, we’re talking to the Peevers at the moment. Do you have anything?”  
“I’m afraid I have.” His voice said more than the words. He had news, not good news. Very bad news.   
“No.”  
“A jogger found a body in Griffith Park. A baby body and from what I can tell, it looks a lot like Annabelle. The photos we saw, the one we have, I’m certain it is her.”  
“She’s dead?” A stupid question, he just told her, they found a body.   
“Yes. The coroner is on her way, I can’t give you a verified COD, to me it looks like strangulation.”  
“Was she buried?”  
“Thrown in a bush, buried a little bit, not deep, the jogger found her because her dog stopped and didn’t come, when she called it.”  
“Fuck. Okay…uhm…I tell Brandon and then…we come over. Without the Peevers.”  
“Okay. I send you the address.”   
“Thanks.” She ended the call. This wasn’t what she hoped would happen. They had a dead baby. If it was Annabelle they had to ask themselves the question, if all the other babies were dead too. Had they been wrong? Was kidnapping and selling the babies not what these men planed? Had they other reasons? Worse? 

Sofia was afraid Don had been right. The body of the little baby in Griffith Park was Annabelle. Buried under a bush away from the footpath in the south of the park, somebody tried to make sure the girl wasn’t found easily. The nose of the dog changed this, let the plan fail.   
“She’s so small.” Sofia swallowed a few times. How could people do this? How could they kill a baby? It was defenseless, didn’t harm anybody. Why? What could be your reason for such a cruel act?  
Don put his hand on her shoulder. “It’s Annabelle, isn’t it?”  
“Yes.”  
“Do you want…want to take care of her? Or shall I call Brandon? Is Greg back?”  
“He’s in the lab, it’s better he doesn’t see this.” Sofia knew Greg would see the photo she was about to take. It was his case, he couldn’t avoid evidence. But she hoped seeing a photo wasn’t as bad as seeing it for real. “I take care of her.”  
“Okay. We try to get witnesses, people who are here regularly. And inform the Peevers when Annabelle is with the coroner. She has to confirm her identity first.”  
“It’s her.” Sofia took a deep breath and walked to the coroner and the baby. “Hi Cherry.”  
“Hey Sofia, how are you?”  
“This isn’t good, this gives the whole case a new destiny.”  
“They killed before.”  
“Yes, but never the babies. We thought they sell them. If we were wrong they killed them the whole time and around here might be more bodies.” They had to order search dogs, search the whole area. If there were more bodies, it was likely they were all around this area and they could have a few more bodies by the end of the day.   
“Recruits and dogs are ordered to check the area. Lets hope they won’t find anything.”  
Sofia hoped so. On the other hand was she aware of the possibility, the other bodies were at another place, another part of the park. Griffith park was huge, it was almost impossible to check the whole area, it would take ages.   
“Don said she was strangled.” The blonde saw the strangu-lation marks on the small throat. It didn’t take a lot of force to kill a baby this way.   
“Yes. Which can help us.”  
“How?”  
“The killer used his hands. See here?” Cherry pointed to a bruise. “It’s a thumb.”  
“You can get us a photo of it we can use?”  
“You bet I will. He killed her and left something of him behind. See if you can get some traces before I take care of her.”  
“Thanks.” Sofia started with photos. Concentrate on the job, don’t think about you’re working on a baby, you don’t see her as a fragile little person, see her as evidence. Stay focused, be a professional, she told herself. It seemed impossible to do so.   
Sara. She had to call her lover when she was done here. Her voice, talking to her, it was essential for a case like this. Only the words of her lover could make her feel better, get her head clean.   
After taking photos she looked at the closer area around the body. Shoeprints. One, two, three, four at least five different pair of shoes. The coroner, the police, the jogger, who else? She needed the shoes of all people, who were here. Maybe they got lucky and the killer’s prints were also left behind. Securing two prints she kneed next to the body. Don’t look at the face. Look for evidence.   
There were a few hairs, looked like they came from the dog. She bagged them. Another hair, long. The jogger maybe? Sofia didn’t know if the jogger was male or female, had long or short hair and it didn’t matter now, the hair was evidence. Soil and bugs. The body had been here a while and bugs didn’t need much time find it, start eating it. Because Annabelle had been buried there were no signs of larger animals. Her clothes were a little bit torn, to Sofia it looked like it might have happened when the dogs started digging. Don’t let this be a sexual assault, please. Please don’t make it worse. She had suffered enough. 

“Hi Jules.”   
“What are you trying to hide from me?” Jules asked Sara straight forward. The brunette just came up the stairs, looked into the second bedroom to greet the other woman and the therapist knew right away, Sara tried to hide something.   
“My dirty boots.” Without stopping Sara went in her bedroom, closed the door and fell backwards on the bed. One hour ago she finished work, drove back home and before she had the chance to get into the house Sofia called her. They found a dead baby. Annabelle. The whole case could be not about selling but killing babies. Her lover had been devastated, was close to cy and needed a few minutes of her attention. Almost half an hour. Her whole lunch break. And Sara still felt like driving to the lab, see her girlfriend, pull her in her arms and kiss her. It was hard to let her work on the case alone. On her feelings.   
“You don’t wear boots.” Jules came into the room and sat next to Sara. “You left them downstairs, like you always do.”  
“So you can’t see them.”  
“Why don’t you tell me it’s not my business? Before you continue to lie to me.”  
“That’s rude.”  
“Or honest.”  
“Where are Eric and Jorja?” She changed the topic.   
“Out with their three personal bodyguards. An armed police captain, a tall man and a crazy woman ready to kill everybody with her bare hands. They took the twins and the dogs for a walk in the sunshine and give me time to breathe. I never thought twins can be this demanding.”  
“When you kill somebody with your bare hands, strangle him to death, it’s personal.”  
“Yes.”  
“The killer knew the victim, had a personal relationship with him.”  
“Very likely.”  
“It takes more than a few hours to have a personal relationship.”  
“You’re not talking about Tanya and her way of protecting the twins, are you?”  
“No.”  
“Are you going to tell me what you refer to?”  
“No.” Sara pulled Jules in her arms and snuggled into them. Not her therapist anymore but her friend. Much better. A friend could comfort you better.   
“You’re lying again.”  
Of course she lied. It was impossible for her to keep a secret from Jules and sooner or later the therapist would read all details in the newspaper or hear it on radio and TV.   
“Why do I tell you everything? Is this because of the hocus-pocus you use? Did you cast a spell on me?”  
“Do you feel cursed?”  
“No.”  
“So it can’t be a spell.”  
“Don’t tell me it’s something stupid like friendship and sympathy.” Sara chuckled.   
“I won’t tell you, you said it yourself.”  
“What happened to all your doctor friends? Don’t they want to see the twins?” Another change of topic, another try to get Jules’s mind off what was bothering Sara. Another try that won’t work out.   
“They saw them in hospital.”  
“And that’s enough for them? Or do they stay away because you’re here?”  
“They have to work, most of them have a family of their own and yes, they don’t feel comfortable coming here.”  
“You can invite them, neither Sofia nor I will jump them. We know how to behave and are not interested in them. Hard to believe, but a lesbian doesn’t jump every woman she sees. Not even when they’re doctors.”  
“I hope they don’t think this, I expect them to be more sensible. By the way, homosexuality isn’t a disorder anymore. The smart men and women found this out a couple of years ago. In May, I forgot the exact year.”  
“We google it, print the page out for your friends and they can come over. You don’t have to meet them anywhere else. It’s really okay when they’re here.”   
“Thanks. I might do that for Sunday, having some coffee and cake together. Otherwise is your place packed with people already, you don’t need another half a dozen here, between all the actors practicing, your in-laws and us. When our sweet-hearts close the case we can go back home and you have your space and silence back.”  
“Will you go back to the house?”  
“Yes. We wanted this house, we bought and won’t let a criminal scare us away. Greg and Sofia find them, Don arrests them and we can go back to our house.”  
“Good. Moving is too expensive and too stressful with the twins.”  
“Are they about to close the case?”  
“No.” Time to tell her friend the sad news. “They found Annabelle.”  
“Dead?”  
“Yes. Strangled.”  
“That makes no sense.”  
“No, it doesn’t. Saying this, so many things of this last scene don’t make any sense.”  
“What about evidence?”  
“A scene with a body gives usually a lot of evidence.”  
“It could be the scene that helps them close the case.”  
“Yes. I hope so.”  
“So do I. It’s a strange feeling knowing your babies are out, there are three people with them, one with a weapon and at the same time you worry. Even when they don’t try to steal the twins now, they might follow them to here and try it again. I found myself scared for a second when the doorbell rang. Understandable, after all, they seemed to be in front of my door once but I’m afraid these tensions will go over to the twins and scare them. They’re supposed to feel safe all the time, how can I provide this, when I’m afraid something might happen to them? They feel when their mother is nervous.”  
“What can we do to make you feel safe?”  
“Close the case, send these men to prison.”  
“They’re trying exactly this.”  
“Greg tries to keep information away from me, probably because they’re mostly bad news. I prefer to hear bad news than no news. You can prepare yourself when you heard bad news.”  
“He tries to protect you, leave it to me to tell you the bad news.”  
“Not your job.”  
“But I do it perfectly.”  
“You do. Do you want to come with me when I go home later to get a few things?”  
“Sure, you need a bodyguard.”  
“Don’t tell me you’ve your weapon here too.”  
“Okay, I won’t tell you, I simply join you.”  
“My babies are in a house full with weapons. The good thing is, they’re too small to get them accidentally in their hands. Law enforcement people are crazy.”  
“That’s why they end up with a shrink as a wife.” Sara grinned. She wasn’t a law enforcement person anymore but she had her gun with her. Only in case somebody might decide to get into the house without being invited. 

When Sofia entered the last shoeprint in her computer and started the search she leant back, closed her eyes and tried to push the picture of the dead baby away. Annabelle was dead. Were they wrong? Were all the other babies dead too? How could they support the parents, make them keep on believing when their evidence pointed towards such bad news?   
“You look like you need a beer.” Greg came with a muffin in the room.   
“A muffin would be nice too. When I drink beer here my supervisor might not like it.”  
“Or gets himself a beer. Want half of it? I bet you skipped lunch.”  
“I did. Thanks.”  
He cut the muffin in half. “You’re checking on the shoe prints of the scene?”  
“Yes. I entered photos of the prints of Brandon, the coroner, the jogger, Don and the officer first at scene, lets see if we get some brands and sizes for the other prints.”  
“I started the DNA profiles.”  
“Brandon is with Cherry, they try to get a good picture of the strangulation mark. With a little luck we have a fingerprint. Or at least a size of the hand.”  
The computer beeped.   
“We’ve got a print…sneaker size ten.” The computer showed them the brand and model of the shoe. Sofia bit her lips. She had seen such a shoe before. Where? Was it on one of the video of the man?   
“I’ve seen this shoe before…the video files with the faked doctor are on the computer, aren’t they?”  
“Yes.” Greg sat next to her close to the screen when she started the first video. Nothing, no shoes. The second video gave them a different angle. Nothing. Number three only showed the back of the head for a second and was over.   
“There! There are his shoes…they don’t look like sneakers to me.” She stopped the screen and zoomed the shoes. The definition wasn’t good, too bad to get brand or model from it but good enough to tell her, this weren’t the sneaker she had seen.   
“Where else could I’ve seen them?”  
“Was it a scene? Which crime scene was it? The first case?”  
“No…yesterday! I saw them yesterday…I need the crime scene photos.” She jumped off her chair, bit on her lips when she felt some pain in her left knee, ignored it and got the crime scene photos. Together with Greg she skimmed through them.   
“There they are! Even the same color like the computer showed us!” Greg pointed to a pair of sneakers.  
“I knew I saw them before.” Her blue eyes stared at the brown sneakers.   
“Can they be the one we were looking for?”  
“I don’t know…but if…”  
“If they are the ones we’re looking for, the case just turned…”  
“Yeah…we need to cross check.”  
“Why don’t I work on the shoeprints of today while you get Don go and get these sneakers? And I call Brandon, if we’re right we should see it in the soil too.”  
“Right…fuck Greg! If we’re right…I don’t want to think about it.”  
“Lets work and think afterwards of what it means when we find out…things we don’t want to find out.” Could the truth get worse than they thought it was already? At the moment everything pointed that way. 

“Are you sure you want to go alone?” Marie asked when Sara and Jules came into the living room.   
“Yes. If you can take care of the twins for another half an hour it would be nice.”  
“I look after them for an hour or two, don’t worry about me and your babies. We’re fine, you fed them, they sleep and when they wake up, we’re here to entertain them – as far as you can entertain four days old babies. Plus there’s an army of rookies, called actors, in the living room.”  
“Thanks Captain.”   
“Call her Marie, you’re over the ‘Captain’ and ‘Doctor’ crap. See each other as normal people and not titles. A title doesn’t make you special.”  
“Well, Jules is special to you and if I wouldn’t know you love my daughter I hadn’t woken you up this gently. Sleeping during the day with another woman in your arms. Poor Sofia, hopefully she’ll never find out.”  
“In this case she’ll forgive me to have a nap with Jules in my arms.” They fell asleep on Sara’s bed and were woken up when Marie and Tanya came upstairs with the hungry twins. To Sara’s surprise it didn’t feel awkward to wake up with Jules in her arms.   
“We better won’t tell her.”  
“I’ll tell her tonight, we don’t have secrets. I learnt in therapy it’s stupid to keep secrets from your therapist and especially stupid to have secrets from your girlfriend. As I was a bright patient, I remember this every day and live after it.”  
“Just remember the bed upstairs is yours and Sofia’s bed.”  
“My mom-in-law really wants Sofia and me to be together forever, I like that.”  
“She’s a smart woman, knows who belongs to whom. Shall we?” Jules blinked at Marie.   
“Yes. We see you later. Do we need anything for dinner? Shall we pick something up?”  
“No, we did the shopping this morning and Mark has already plans what he wants to cook for all of us.”  
“Full service, wow.” It was very handy to have her in-laws over, they should come here more often.   
When Sara opened the front door Scooby and Rantanplan were next to her. “Guys, we’re not going for a walk, we want to get some clothes for our guests.” The look they gave her said, they didn’t care where she was about to go, they wanted to be with her.   
“Take them with us, our personal protection dogs.”  
“Okay you can come with us.” She didn’t bother with a leash. When the car door was opened the dogs jumped into the car and for the way from the car to the next house was no leash needed. Scooby and Rantanplan listened when Sara called them.   
“How does it feel being a mom? The first four days.”  
“I knew it’s a lot of work, was fully aware of the fact my life would change completely but it’s more work than I thought. The nights are difficult, when one baby cries the other ones starts and it takes a while before they go back to sleep. Means I can’t sleep a whole night anymore, neither can Greg when he’s in the same room. Can you talk to him? He should sleep when he has to work the next day. The couch downstairs is the best solution at the moment. Or the gym area.”  
“I can try.”  
“Thanks. Were you very annoyed last night when they woke you up?”  
“No, I heard them, it was okay. The best training when we want a child.”  
“Who gets the nightshift?”  
“Sofia as long as she’s at home. Afterwards I can ask to work late so she can sleep and take our baby to daycare in the morning. That leaves a couple of hours of sleep for me in the morning.”  
“Not much time for you and Sofia together.”  
“No more long mornings in bed, sleeping in, no. Same for you and Greg, the next years there won’t be a sleep in, later they come into your bed. It takes a while before they start to sleep longer than you do.”  
“Teenager time. I don’t want to think about that.”  
“You’ve a few more years – and maybe more kids by then.”  
“Did Greg say he wants more?”  
“No. Why? You don’t want more kids?”  
“Two should be enough.”  
“Sofia won’t like that, she wanted a godchild too.”  
“You have to share Eric.”  
“No! He’s mine. My baby.”  
“What happened to your…fear of doing something wrong?”  
“Is more and more blown away since I had him the first time in my arms. He makes me feel like I can’t do anything wrong as long as I love him. Such an amazing boy. When he looks at me I feel like he really looks at me, smiles at me and I am the only person in the room he cares for. Not unlike his mother. She can do the same things.”  
“Comes with the job.”  
“Manipulate people.”  
“Empathize.”  
“Same shit, different word.”  
“Stop pretending you don’t like my job, you like how I could help you because of my profession.”  
“It wasn’t your profession, it was you. Your profession hadn’t help a bit if you had been like all the other therapist. I stayed with you because you’re you, you’re special. That’s why we’re friends – and because you date my best friend.”  
“I knew he’s the father of my children.”   
“Forget the rules, they suck anyway.” Sara stopped the car in front of Jules’s house.   
“Rules are there to be bent, one of my former clients told me.” Jules got out the car and walked with Sara and the dogs to the house.   
“We won’t tell Eric and Jorja.”  
“No, they’ll find out themselves soon enough.” She unlocked the door and the dogs stormed in, barking.   
“Quiet boys, there’s no need to…what the fuck?” Sara stopped in the doorframe.   
“Oh my god!” The hallway looked like it was a war zone. Furniture on the floor, a broken mirror, pictures were on the ground.   
“Scooby! Rantanplan! Come here! Right now!” Sara ordered. Holding both dogs on the collars she pulled them out of the house. “Jules, call the police.”  
“Our house.”  
“Jules, get out! Now! You’re destroying evidence.”  
“I’ve to look…”  
“No! Damn it.” Sara let go of the dogs and pulled her friend out of the house. “Sit down, hold the dogs so they can’t run away, I call the police.” She got her cell phone out of her pocket and dialed Lynn’s number.   
“Hey Sara, how are you?”  
“I’m fine, thanks. Lynn, can you come over to Greg’ house?”  
“He stays with you, doesn’t he?”  
“Yes, Jules and me are at their place and it looks like somebody broke in and destroyed furniture and decoration.”  
“Shit. Stay out of the house…get in the car in case the burglars are still inside, I come over ASAP.”  
“Thanks.” She ended the call. “Lynn comes over.”  
“Okay. Do you think somebody broke in and stole things?”  
“Likely. Did you have important and expensive things in there?”  
“We have our important papers with us, also all the money. Some jewelries are in the house, folder with tax and other papers, our furniture…electronic equipment. I can’t go in, can I?”  
“Not until the police is here. And Lynn will call a CSI team to get the evidence. When you walk in now, you destroy evidence and we don’t know for sure if the burglar is gone. Why don’t you call Greg while we go back into the car and wait for the police?”  
“Because he works and needs to focus.”  
“Jules, I don’t need to tell you it’s better to call him. He’ll be mad when you don’t tell him.”  
“Do you think it could be the same guys? The kidnapper? Angry because we weren’t here?”  
“A lot of things are possible.” Sara had the same thought when she entered the house. It didn’t feel like a coincidence. 

“Did you find our baby?” Mrs. Peevers asked when Sofia and Don entered the interrogation room. Greg left straight after Jules called and told him about the break in, Brandon worked still on evidence. Nevertheless they were quite sure they had a few answers. Answers they didn’t like.  
“Yes we did.”  
“Where is she? I want to see her.”  
“Why don’t tell you where your daughter is?” Sofia looked at Mister Peevers.   
“What? I? I’ve no idea where she is.”  
“Really?”  
“Of course, I called you because she was kidnapped.”  
“What did you do yesterday morning? Did you take her out? Enjoy the sunshine?”  
“No, I went…to a store.”  
“Which one?”  
“Down at the corner of Silver Lake Boulevard, why?”  
“Got any receipts?” Sofia knew the shop, she was there often when she was with the dogs at the dog’s playground and needed something to drink or a little snack.   
“No.”  
“Why do you ask my husband so many questions? Where’s Annabelle?”  
“We found in your house soil from Griffith Park. Have you been there lately?”  
“Two days ago we went there for a walk. Why?” Mrs. Peevers answered.   
“Where?”  
“Gosh…around the Observatory. Why is that important?”  
“Because we found Annabelle in Griffith Park.”  
“What? I want to see her! How is she? Is she fine? How does she get into Griffith Park? Did the kidnapper live there? Around there? Did somebody find her there and called you?”  
“No.” Don’s voice was cold. “Mister Peevers?”  
“I’ve no idea where the kidnapper live.”  
“I do believe you this.”  
“So why do you ask me?”  
“Because Annabelle wasn’t kidnapped, wasn’t she?”  
“What? Of course.”  
“What are they talking about, Honey?”  
“Your daughter wasn’t found at the Observatory, Mrs. Peevers. Did you wear your brown sneakers lately, Mister Peevers?”  
“Can be. I don’t remember which pair of shoes I wear when.”  
“Yesterday morning?”  
“Maybe.”  
“The soil we found under your sneakers tell us you did.” Sofia took over. “And it also told us, you’ve been to Griffith Park, not the Observatory, the south area. The same area where we found Annabelle.”  
“No!” Mrs. Peevers turned pale and Sofia knew, she realized now, her daughter was found, but not alive. They hadn’t said she was dead, only she was found but the mother realized now, there wasn’t a happy end to this story. “No! No! This can’t be! She can’t be dead.”  
“She was strangled to death.” Sofia’s eyes were on Mister Peevers. “And buried under a bush. A good place, no human does look there. What wasn’t though of are the good noses of some dogs. They smell dead bodies, even when they’re buried a feet deep.”  
“Oh my god.”  
“You smoke, don’t you, Mister Peevers?”  
“I stopped when the baby was born. My wife doesn’t want me smoking around her and when I smoke outside the smoke is still in my clothes and Annabelle inhales it.”  
“Your wife told you to stop but you smoked yesterday.”  
“Gary…”  
“The famous brand with the cowboy, right?”  
“How do they know?”  
“They’re fishing.”  
“No, we found a cigarette butt of this brand DNA will confirm shortly it’s your cigarette.” So they were only a little bit fishing.   
“Maybe the kidnapper took my cigarettes.”  
“Your cigarette butt? Come on, that’s stupid.”  
“To frame me.”  
“They didn’t do this before, why would they change their pattern?”  
“To confuse you.”  
“No. Did you know that it’s possible to get fingerprints from skin? Like when you press your hand strong on somebody’s skin there’s an impression and we can use this to identify whoever assaulted the other one.”   
“Impossible.”  
“Nowadays nothing is impossible, all these new machines can do real magic. Why don’t you tell us what happened ?”  
“Gary…”  
“Shut up! Just shut the fuck up! You’re like this little brat! I should have killed you too!”   
“What? You…”  
“Yes I killed her. She was like you, looked like you. And screamed the whole day, tried to force me to do whatever she wanted. I’ve to put up with you, it’s enough you push me around all the time, I don’t want your mini you to do the same. She was annoying! An annoying screaming picture of you! Without a break. Cry, cry, cry. All day long. Nothing I did was good enough to make her shut up for a while. Wah! Wah! Wah! Stupid little brat. Never stopped. So I made her stop. And you know what? It felt good! Finally she was quiet and I had some time for myself.”  
“You killed our daughter?”  
“Your daughter, I never wanted her. I never wanted to stay at home. You made the decision. Yeah, for you it’s easy, you go to work and don’t have to listen to her all day. The crying. I had enough.”  
“Gary Peevers you’re under arrest for the killing of your daughter Annabelle.” Don raised and got his handcuffs. “You’ve the right to remain silent…”  
“Silence! Yes, please. Take me somewhere where it’s silent.”   
“You killed our baby!” Mrs. Peevers jumped up and started pushing and slapping her husband. “You killed her! You killed Annabelle! You’re a monster!” The officer in the room stepped between and pulled her away. “You’re a killer! A baby murderer!”   
Sofia felt like telling the officer to let go of the woman so she could get some kind of revenge. Not that it could bring back her daughter, but it would help. Mister Peevers deserved to be slapped and pushed. Hard.   
Brandon entered the room. He had watched the last minutes from the other side of the one-way mirror. “Mrs. Peevers? Would you like to see your daughter?” He offered with a soft voice.   
“Yes.”   
“Come with me, I take you to Annabelle.” He got his arm around her and walked her out the room. Don handed Mister Peevers over to the officer.   
“Book him in. Don’t be too picky with the cell.”  
“Sure thing, detective.”   
When they left the room Sofia took a deep breath. Their assumption had been right. It were Mister Peevers sneakers she had seen, when they checked them, got some soil from it and compared it to the soil they found at the crime scene, they knew he was their killer. The cigarette butt had been a worth a try, they found it, didn’t know if it was really his, DNA hadn’t confirmed it yet. Like they weren’t absolutely sure the impression on Annabelle’s throat had been from her own father. It added up and he reacted the way, a guilty suspect does.   
“He killed his own daughter.” She mumbled.   
“It makes me feel sick.”   
“Me too. Her own father.”  
“And he tried to cover it up. Our baby kidnapper seemed to be the perfect people to blame for. We fell for it, everything pointed towards them. She was in the age range of them, the area of the city was right, he said the right things. Probably studied the newspaper and learnt, what we found at the other scenes.”  
“He planed it.”  
“Yes he did. You know what I hope?”  
“What?”  
“That he gets a cell with cell mates who are fathers.” Child abuser and killer never had an easy life in prison, often they didn’t survive the time they had to serve and Don didn’t feel sorry when they were killed. In his eyes they didn’t deserve to live. When you kill a child, when you kill your own child, why would you have any rights to live? 

Sara had taken the dogs into the car and waited for Jules and Greg to come back out of the house.   
“How does it look inside?” She asked Lynn when her friend came out of the house.   
“Like war. Somebody was looking for something or was very angry.”  
“Was anything taken?”  
“No, only destroyed. Makes me go with the anger issue.”  
“Yeah…anger because there weren’t any babies to take.”  
“Maybe. Do you think they’ll stay in this house?”  
“It was their plan before this happened. After today they might change their mind. I would.” First a potential kidnapper in front of your house than the same guy in your house, destroying your furniture. How could you feel safe anymore?   
“So would I. A new house, moving…with two babies. Tough.”  
“Yeah…they can stay with us as long as they want even when it’s not a perfect solution. The babies don’t sleep the whole night, you saw how tired Greg looks. He should sleep somewhere else, in another room.”  
“Don left his room to Sofia’s parents.”  
“He’s cute. It helps a lot.”  
“How long will Jules’s cousin stay?”  
“Her plan was to move back with Jules and Greg ASAP. Otherwise she might have found a place to stay from the first of January.”  
“Full house for Christmas and New Years Eve.”  
“Like usually. She offered she can ask her aunt to stay with her, I think it’s better when she stays with us. More people for the security of the babies. And some company for Jules. When Marie and Mark are back home there won’t be somebody around all the time. Tony works most times from home, sometimes he has to leave. With Tanya in the house Jules is never alone.”  
“True….look who’s coming around!” Lynn pointed to a car stopping right behind Sara’s. A smile appeared on Sara’s face. Sofia. It was after four and her lover stopped working. Or was the CSI on scene? There were two already inside, for a third one was no need.   
“Lieutenant, good to see you.”  
“Are you working or having a chicks chat afternoon, officer?” Sofia grinned.   
“Talking to a witness.”  
“Really? Let me take over.” Sofia pulled Sara in her arms and kissed her. “Hello witness, anything you want to tell me?”  
“You’re very sexy, CSI Curtis. I love that swagger. Wanna go home with me later when we’re done here?”  
“Absolutely.”  
“Lieutenant, she can’t go until we have her statement.”  
“Why don’t you do your job, officer? And I stay here, make sure she doesn’t run away.” Sofia sat on Sara’s lap. “How are Greg and Jules?”  
“Shocked. Most of their furniture is ruined. They shouldn’t move back into here.”  
“No, too many bad memories. We keep them with us?”  
“Of course. Maybe you have to build this room on top of the garage, give it and Don’s room to them, Don has to move next to us and we’re all happy.”  
“They want their own place - as much as I like your idea. Our babies with us.”  
“My Eric.”  
“Sara is in love with her godchild.” Sofia said to Lynn. “She’s absolutely crazy for this little guy. You should come along and see them.”  
“I might do that tomorrow when I’ve a day off. When are you having a day off`?”  
“Good questions, I’m due to have one since…I don’t know when. If there won’t be a new scene I can stay at home tomorrow. So I’m kind of on call duty. Which annoys me because I want a day off with Sara, sleep in, breakfast in bed.”  
“Sounds nice. I’ve Monday and Tuesday off to wave your parents goodbye.”  
“I’ll try to get them off too.”  
“Good.”  
“Greg and Jules are coming back. Sara, I won’t ask you to come to station, I’ve your statement, if there are any more question I know where to find you. In the arms of the lieutenant.”  
“Where I belong.”  
“I know.”  
“Hey, why don’t we have a BBQ night tomorrow? Bring your BF and we have a beer or two in the garden, the weather is supposed to be dry, not that warm but we’ll cope with a blanket.” Sofia suggested.   
“Sure, why not. I bring some steaks.”  
“Perfect.”  
“How long do you have to work, Sara?”  
“Until two from six in the morning.”  
“So you can join in too. I talk to Kyle and Don when I’m back at the department. They should like this idea.”  
“Okay. Hey, how are you guys? How bad is it?”  
“Pretty bad.” Greg sighed. “We can throw away most of our things. I hope the insurance company will pay.”  
“They’ve to.” Jules said.   
“Yeah…Honey, I don’t want to live in this house anymore. Sorry. I know we looked a while to find it, it seemed to be perfect but…”  
“Not anymore.”  
“No.”  
“I don’t want to live in it neither.”  
“Okay, lets look for a new place to stay. Sofia…”  
“You can stay as long as you want, don’t dare to ask. Take your time, find something close to our house rather than far away. We want you close.”  
“Thanks.”  
“What are the plans for now?”  
“We’ve to go to the department, do the paper work. When the CSIs are done we can come back and get whatever you want …and we’ve to put this place up for sale.” There was some work to do before they could sell their house, Greg was aware of that. Clean it, repair the worst damage.  
“Okay, we go back home. Don’t worry about Jorja and Eric, they’re in good hands.”  
“Thanks. I’ve no idea what we would do without you.”   
“That’s why you have friends.” Sara hugged Greg and kissed his cheek. “Or your big sis. Go with your wife to the police, we worry about the rest.”  
“Thanks. And thanks for being here with Jules.”  
“Hey, I can’t let her go anywhere alone.”  
“She has a gun.” Jules said quietly. “Is she allowed to carry it?”  
“Yes. And even if not, nobody heard you.” Lynn said. “Lets get to the department.”  
“And we go home.” Sofia took Sara’s hand. “Do you want my car? I’ve to say hello to my guys, they’re waiting for me.” She looked at Scooby and Rantanplan, who barked a few times to get her attention.   
“No problem. I see you at home.”  
“I’ll be right behind you, stare at your sexy ass.”  
“You mean your sexy bumper.” Sara smiled softly. A part of her wanted to join Greg and Jules at the department, wanted to stay with them, support them. The other part knew, it was better when she went back home, looked after the babies and waited for her friends to come home. 

“Where are Jules and Greg?” Doctor Bendler asked when Sofia opened the door.   
“Come in.” The stepped aside to let the doctor enter the house.   
“I heard about what happened to the house. First there’s a potential kidnapper at my daughter’s place while she’s pregnant and nobody bothers to call me, tell me she moved out. Now probably the same people broke into her house and again nobody calls me. I want explanations.” Doctor Bendler followed Sofia into the living room.  
“Hi Alison.” Sara greeted her, Eric on her arms.   
“Hello Sara, where’s Jules? I want answers.”  
“At the LAPD, giving answers.”  
“Why did nobody call me about the break in?”  
“You have to ask Jules.”  
“Why didn’t you call me?”  
“Because it’s not my decision. Like with the man at her door. When she decides she doesn’t want you to know I’ve to respect this. Yes, you’re her mother, but she’s old enough to make her own decisions.”  
“Children are never old enough to make their own decisions when it comes to things like this.” Marie entered the room. “Why don’t you have one of those, doctor Bendler?” She offered a tray with glasses filled with whiskey.   
“I’ve to drive.”  
“Sofia can drive you, she takes medicine and isn’t supposed to drink alcohol. My daughter also doesn’t tell me much about her life. Like she never mentioned she had problems with her leg, got an infection and couldn’t use her prosthesis for a few days. Not that we won’t find out these things anyway.” Marie gave Sofia a firm look.   
“I never told you everything when I was a child, why would I start with it now?”  
“Because I find out anyway.”  
“You’re the captain go and work the clues, it’s your job.”  
“You’re the detective, go detect!” Sara grinned widely.   
“Not funny, CSI Sidle.” Sofia pouted and smiled back at Jorja who seemed to smile at her. Maybe the baby liked it when she made grimaces. No, she couldn’t see that, could she?   
“Why don’t you sit down and wait for your daughter?” Marie asked doctor Bendler. “They should be back any time soon.”  
“Where is Tanya? Was she with Jules?”  
“Tanya has an appointment with another doctor, she can work maybe work with. I was with Jules and she was safe the whole time, I was armed. Not only the police can walk around with guns.”  
“Only the police is supposed to do it.”   
“Captain, you have to remember, this isn’t your precinct.”  
“When you break rules I’ve to act.”  
“No, you’re on holidays, you can mix cocktails, have sleep ins and long walks with the dogs. Or play babysitter.”  
“Talking about babies, will I get my grandchildren?” Doctor Bendler asked.   
“Not really.” Sara sighed and handed Eric over. “Only because you’re his grandmother and I have to feed the dogs. How did the pizza look?”  
“Good to me but you have to ask the chef. Mark won’t let you serve until he thinks it’s perfect.”  
“Alison, you can stay for dinner.”  
“I’m not here for dinner.”  
“No, but until Jules comes back you can eat with us. Stay with your grandchildren. You want to spend more time with them, don’t you?”  
“Okay. Captain, I assume you looked after my grandchildren today?”  
“Yes. With your niece and my husband we took them out for a walk so your daughter can have a few minutes for herself, get some sleep. The way I understood these two lovely children are real nightmares when it comes to let their parents sleep.”  
“I’ve two days off from Sunday on and can take over too. What will happen to the house? Can they move back in?”  
“When the police says it’s not a crime scene anymore. Until the CSI is done it will take another day.” Sofia explained. “They might be allowed to go back in there tonight, get a few things out, but mostly it has to stay as it is so CSI can find evidence.”  
“This house isn’t good for them.”  
“They will sell it, both don’t want to live in there anymore.” Sara came back into the living room. “We offered them to stay here as long as they want. It’s packed in the room, not the perfect place to stay but it’s for free and safe.”  
“You have people here all the time, otherwise I’d get them over to my place. We do have a free room and a sleep couch in the offices.”  
“It’s a good offer when we have the kidnapper.”   
“Which is when?”  
“I wish I knew the answer.” Sofia sighed. After she thought first they had found important evidence they learnt the last case wasn’t connected to the kidnapper and they were exactly where they were two days ago. Without a hot trace. 

“You haven’t told me about the case you closed today.” Sara said when she came into the bedroom.   
“Not a nice story and no happy end.” Sofia placed her prosthesis next to the bed, looked at her stump. The infection was gone, the wound was still visible and she applied some of the heal crème on it.   
“Me calling you because of Jules’s and Greg’s house wasn’t a nice story neither.”   
“No.” Sofia pulled Sara in her arms, kissed her. “Annabelle was killed by her own father. Her case had nothing to do with the kidnapper. He tried to frame them.”  
“He killed his own daughter?”  
“Shocking, isn’t it?”  
“Why?”  
“Because she cried, he had to stay at home, she wanted his attention, reminded him of his wife. So many stupid reasons.”  
“He said that?”  
“Yes. After it was obvious we didn’t believe his story, he couldn’t blame somebody else and all the evidence pointed towards him. His wife sat next to him, he said all those things straight to her face and there was so much hate in his voice. Hate for the wife, the baby. He even said, he wished he had killed her too.”  
“Gosh.” Sara took Sofia’s hand and squeezed them.   
“I wanted to punch the crap out of him. Why did he not just leave them?”  
“It’s his house, the baby was new, the new one has to go.”  
“Humans are monsters. Some of them. The only good thing was, Don told the officer, who took the bastard to the arresting cell, not to be too picky with the cell. When his cell mates hear what he did, he’ll pay and I wish it will be very painful. Not the thought I should have, I know…but…I can’t help it.”  
“You were helpless and angry, understandable. As a CSI these thoughts might not be professional but you’re a human, you can think these things.”  
“Without feeling guilty.”  
“Yes.”  
“I so hoped we can close the cases, have the kidnapper and end this horrible story. Instead they might have broken into Greg’s house, destroy most of it and made them kind of homeless. Our little one doesn’t have a lot of luck the last days. Beside of the birth of his wonderful twins.”  
“This house is bad luck. They’ll sell it, find a new one and I already told them to stay close to us.”  
“Good. I want our babies close.”  
“Me too. Even when they wake us up in the night.”  
“Doesn’t matter, our baby will wake us up too.”  
“We do wake each other up occasionally. And I’m really happy nightmares are not the reason anymore.” Sara placed kisses on Sofia’s throat.   
“Sex is much more fun than nightmares…are you trying to get me in the mood with your soft kisses and magic lips?”  
“Never.”   
“Miss Sidle, you’re a liar, a cute one.” Sofia grinned, pulled Sara on top of her and got her hands under the brunette’s shirt.   
“Not a liar, a lover. You’re lover who loves you.”  
“You love me? What a crazy coincidence, I love you too.” The blonde pulled the head of the other woman down and kissed her softly. No matter how bad the day was, her lover could always get her thoughts away from work to some nice things. Sara’s love made her strong, made her continuing fighting and never give up. Sometimes she thought it was crazy what their love could do to them. Crazy and so wonderful. Weren’t they just the best things ever happened to each other?


	3. Chapter 3

17th of December

“Can’t you call in sick?” Sofia grabbed the sleeve of the pullover on her lover, who was about to get up and leave the room.   
“No.” The brunette bent down and kissed the other woman. “I can’t. Sorry.”  
“Me too.”  
“My thoughts will be with you and I should be back around one or two. We can have late lunch together if you don’t get called in.”  
“I hope I can have a few hours at home, talk to my parents, take the dogs out for a walk. They’re here and I barely see them.”  
“Yes but they know why, know you can’t change it when you have a hot case. And we are all involved in this case somehow.”  
“True. Do you take me downstairs with you? Breakfast and kisses.”  
“Sure. Come on.” Sara wanted to pull Sofia out of bed and ended on the bed.   
“Did I mention I play dirty?” The mouth of the blonde crashed down and stopped the upcoming protest, changed it into a passionate kiss. Holding Sara’s hand over her head together with her right hand, the left started to get under the pullover of the brunette, finding the thin fabric of the bra. Hard nipples told her, her lover wasn’t mad.   
“Screw the breakfast, I know something better to do.”  
“You want to screw me.” Sara gasped.   
“More than anything else. If you can’t call in sick, what about being a little bit late?”  
“Not possible.”  
“Let me make it possible.” Pulling down the bra so she had her hands on the soft skin, Sofia’s lips found the pulse point on Sara’s throat.   
“Honey…oh…I…you…oh god…”  
“Your body tells me it wants you to be late.”  
“I could skip breakfast…”  
“That will do for the start.”  
“I can’t do mo…” The rest of the sentence ended in a moan. How was she supposed to stay strong when Sofia made her lose her mind? Her lover was right, she didn’t play fair. Not at all.   
***  
“Did you sleep in?” Greg asked when Sofia came into the kitchen. It was half past five and most times Sara and Sofia were in the kitchen when he came downstairs. “I didn’t see you having breakfast upstairs.”  
“We skipped it.”  
“Sara skipped it.”  
“Yes.”  
“Okay, the way you smile I know why she skipped it. No explanation needed.”  
“You wouldn’t get one anyway. How are my babies?”  
“My kids are fine, only woke us up three times last night.”  
“You look tired.”  
“I am tired. Tonight I’ll sleep on the couch, as much as I hate it, I can’t work with this poor sleep….don’t you have a day off?”  
“Depends on the day. If our kidnappers aren’t active I’ll stay here, yes.”  
“And you’re awake.”  
“My beautiful wife had to go, I couldn’t talk her into taking a sick day, she’s so damn responsible. I love that. My good influence. So I’ll grab a coffee, a sandwich and go back to bed, watch some senseless breakfast TV, fall asleep and have a look for my babies later. It was so quiet in the room, I figured they’re all asleep.”  
“Hopefully, Jules can use some sleep. Your parents and Tanya are a big help.”  
“All three enjoy the twins.”  
“Marie wants her own godchild…from her daughter.”  
“I told her, if she moves to L.A. and is the babysitter when she’s retired we can talk about the baby. Neither Sara nor me want to stop working and we both don’t like the idea of sending the baby to daycare when it’s four or five weeks old.”  
“And you want your parents around.”  
“Don’t say that! I fought for years to get away from them.” Sofia grinned. It was true, she looked forward to see her parents every time. Quite a change from a few years ago when the presence of her parents – especially her mother – made her feel suffocating. The expectation of her becoming a successful police captain like Marie was, the pressure from her parent to settle down and get married like her brother and her own interests were too different. Of course she loved being a cop, of course she wanted to climb up the food chain, but she wanted to do it the way she wanted, her way. Like she wanted to live her private life the way she wanted. Now, a few years later, with the distance of two hundred sixty miles between them, things had changed.   
“Sometimes you need some time and distance to get closer again. Not when it comes to love relationships but for parents and children it works.”  
“It worked for you and your parents.”  
“Yeah, it took them a while before they accepted I’m a real CSI and not a lab rat. Their baby boy wasn’t a baby anymore.”  
“No, he has two babies now. They come over a week, don’t they?”  
“Yes, for Christmas, arrive on Christmas Eve, they booked a room in the motel Sara stayed in when she came to L.A. so Don can come back in his room. I sent them around a hundred photos and a few videos of the twins and they’re in love with them.”  
“Do they know…?”  
“No. They’ve no clue about the kidnappers and the house. Well, they do know about the kidnapper in general, it’s all over the news, but they don’t know these guys were at our house. And I’d prefer if it stays this way.”  
“No problem. It’s always better to keep parents out of certain things – if it’s possible.”  
“It seems to be impossible with your parents.”  
“Yeah, unfortunately.”   
“Are you back at one hundred percent with your leg?”  
“No, more like ninety percent. No pain, no problems, only a twitch once or twice a day. Your mother-in-law did a great job.”  
“She’s the best, that’s why she’s your personal doctor.”  
“I wish I could say the same about my therapist, he isn’t the best. The best is your fiancé.”  
“Who is your friend and so out of limit.”  
“Rules suck.”  
“Says the former lieutenant. Why don’t you go back to bed while I…” His cell phone rang. “Sanders.”   
All Sofia had to see was his face to know, this wasn’t a courtesy call. She washed the rest of her sandwich with coffee down.   
“Okay, I’m on my way and I take Sofia with me….yes….no, she’s here right next to me…see you later.” He ended the call. “Say goodbye to your day off.”  
“The kidnapper were active again?”  
“Yes. Bel Air. A ten days old boy, police is at the scene, they haven’t informed Don, it’s not a homicide and we’re expected there ASAP. The parents are VIPs so this will be a special case.”  
“It’s the same case like the others, only the VIP will add pressure on William and us. Fuck. I get dressed, give me two minutes.”  
“I prepare some coffee and sandwiches for later. We’ll spend some time at the scene and will need a boost in a few hours.” He doubted they were greeted with coffee and cake at the scene. 

Sara got the AMBER alert when she arrived at her work place. A missing baby boy, kidnapped last night. How did they do it this time? In the middle of the night people didn’t walk around with their baby, they were at home, in bed. Means, the kidnap-per must have known where the bedrooms are, when the baby was asleep and if there was an alarm system. It was the middle of December, nobody left a door open this time of the year. They must have known about the alarm system, must have somebody in their group, who can shut alarm systems down. Did that mean her own house wasn’t a safe place at all?  
“A penny for your thoughts.”   
“They are not worth the…wow…” Sara stared at Shane. His hair was red with white stars. Or white with red stars? She wasn’t quite sure.   
“Cool, isn’t it?”  
“It’s a Christmas hair cut.”  
“Ho, ho, ho, do you want to sit on my lap?”  
“No.”  
“Oh. Why do you look so sad? Is Sofia all right?”  
“Yes, she’s fine. I got an new AMBER alert. A little boy disappeared out of his home last night.”  
“Again?”  
“Yes.”  
“Where?”  
“Bel Air. I’m sure they had security.”  
“And you’re afraid they can get into your house, get through your security system.” He read her thoughts. “Kidnap your godchild.”  
“And maybe kill Jules like they did with the mother at the Hollywood reservoir. Not to mention all the other people, who live there at the moment.”  
“You think Sofia’s mother will let a kidnapper shoot her?”  
“I don’t hope so.”  
“The way you talked about her, she’ll rip them apart when they come close to her.” He took Sara in his arms. “Maybe you should take the day off.”  
“No, we have work to do and then I’ll get my mind away from it. How was your evening? Did you plan your Christmas trip?”  
“My Christmas trip will go from the kitchen to the bedroom.”  
“What about Miami?”  
“Cancelled. All I like was too expensive. The TV program over Christmas isn’t too bad and I go to work.”  
“TV? Work?” He reminded her of herself, a couple of years ago. Only work, no private life.   
“What about your friends?”  
“They’re with their families or away on trips. After all, I planed a long weekend with what-was-her-name-again? This won’t happen anymore, I can celebrate with a box of beer and the TV.”  
“Or you come over and celebrate with us.” She offered.   
“Isn’t your place packed enough?”  
“Sofia’s parents leave on the twentieth, Greg’s parents stay in a motel, as far as I know they’ll be over at Jules’s parent’s place most times, the two families are together with their new members for the first time. So yeah, why don’t you come with me? We work together, finish here, go back to my place, have a few beers, good food and celebrate.”  
“Will you then sit on my lap? When I’m your Santa Shane?”  
“When you’ll be around for our after Christmas party and I’m drunk enough this might happen. No wait, as a godmother I can’t get drunk anymore.”  
“Eric won’t realize you’re tipsy and I’d love to see you drunk. Why don’t we go out together?”  
“Because my better half doesn’t like going out anymore.” Something Sara wouldn’t mind if she hadn’t the feeling Sofia suffered. Her girlfriend always loved going out, loved dancing and an evening in a club. Next year she had to get going out again.   
“Is she ashamed of her leg?”  
“The leg, that she can’t dance the way she used to. I’m not a big fan of clubs so I don’t mind when we stay at home, but I know she loved to go out and I wish she’d enjoy it again.”  
“Give her some time.”  
“She can have all the time in the world. So Shany, do we have a date? A Christmas date? Long Christmas party from the twenty-fourth to the twenty-eights? You have the whole Christmas weekend off and later the early shift with me, you can join us.”  
“I like the idea, maybe I can make myself useful while I’m around, take the dogs out for a walk, look after your godchild, prepare dinner. You’ll be back around two?”  
“The park closes at two from Christmas to new near, I’ll be back home around half past two.”  
“Just when I got up, perfect. We’re so on our dates, Sara-Darling.”  
“You call me this at home and Sofia will shoot you.”  
“It made you smile.”  
“Yes, you always cheer me up. Thanks Shane.” She kissed his cheek. It wasn’t like she didn’t worry anymore but he made her smile and that made things easier, her heart lighter. 

“I wonder how they came in.” Sofia looked at the fence. Over two yards high, it surrounded the whole premises, two cameras filmed the way from the gate to the house, an alarm system at the fence, another one for the house. This was the house in Bel Air, from where the last baby was kidnapped. Henry, an African-American boy. His parents owned a beauty shop one block away from Rodeo Drive and celebrated the birth of their first son with a big party last week.   
“There were no traces of break in at the gate.” Greg said. He had checked the gate, it didn’t look like anybody tried to break in recently. “At least no fresh ones. Somebody must have tried to get in a couple of weeks ago.”  
“When she was pregnant?”  
“Must be early pregnancy, I doubt it were the kidnapper. Did you find anything?”  
“The chloroform tissue.” This time Sofia started with the garbage cans to find the only detail they found at every crime scene. “I don’t think we’re dealing with copy cats this time. Did you see the house? The room of the baby? These parents were over the moon to have the baby, they’re both devastated and cry their eyes out.”  
“They blame themselves for not hearing anything.”  
“Understandable.”  
“Can you talk to them? I only talked briefly to them, couldn’t handle it anymore. Maybe I’m too involved into the case…you didn’t hear this, did you?”  
“I heard you know when to step back of the case because it’s the best for you and the people involved. Didn’t you say this?” She smiled.   
“I did. Thanks.”  
“You’re welcome. Do you want to start in Henry’s bedroom while I talk to the parents? Or do you prefer the outside?”  
“The weather looks like it’s gonna rain today, I start here to get the evidence inside.”  
“Okay. Jules and the twins are safe, mom and dad have both eyes on them. Your fiancé will complain she feels like she lives in prison.”  
“No, she knows is for her and the twins best.”  
“Nevertheless it will annoy her; sooner or later.”   
“Blame it on the hormones.” This was a part of pregnancy Sofia looked forward to. Blame it on the hormones. She could blame her hormones for everything when she was pregnant; for her mood, the unhealthy food and long sleep ins.   
“Like most things?”  
“All things. It’s never her fault, always the hormones.”  
“Did she tell you to say this?”  
“No.”  
“Good.”  
“You aren’t arguing, are you?”  
“Not more than any other couple with twins, who suffer from sleepless nights and face the fear of having kidnapper coming after their kids.” He made a grimace.   
“Oh.”  
“I love her, she loves me, the whole situation is a little bit too much at the moment but we’ll handle it. It’s nothing serious.”  
“Okay. You’ll get her a few roses tonight when we come home.”  
“I thought more of I invite her for dinner – if you and Sara look after the twins?”  
“Of course we do! You can take Jules to dinner. Why don’t you have dinner in Paris?”  
“They need breast milk.”  
“Right, there was something. Okay, so maybe a French restaurant.”  
“We’ll see. Back to work, CSI Curtis.”  
“Yes, CSI Sanders.” Sofia squeezed his hand for a second before she turned and walked back inside the house. Jess was with them at the scene and talked to Henry’s parents for a while. Whenever she worked with the detective she wondered how Don felt when he met his colleague. Jess, the name of the woman, he loved. The woman, who died in his arms. The Jess here didn’t look like his Jess but the name must be enough to remind him.  
She entered the two story building. Marble floor, expensive looking paintings on the wall, no shoes lay around, no dust in the corner. Somebody took seriously care of this house and made Sofia feel like she should give her own house a very good winter clean – or a very early spring clean. Well, her house was a house, a place where people lived and not a museum. That was what this place reminded her. A museum. Except for the kid’s room. There were many toys, comic wall paper and a Disney light next to the bed. She had been to the room for a minute and remembered all the details.   
“Mister and Mrs. Morrison?” She approached the couple sitting arm in arm on the couch in the living room. An officer stood next to the room.   
“Did you find anything?” Mrs. Morrison asked.   
“We found something that connects Henry with the other babies.”  
“But you have no idea where he is?”  
“No, I’m sorry. I had a look at your security systems, they look good and expensive.”  
“Apparently they aren’t good enough. Somebody entered the house and kidnapped our son.”  
“Was somebody of the security company here the last weeks?”  
“No. Do you think they’ve something to do with it?”  
“The other families had different security systems, it’s unlikely the company has anything to do with it. How often do you change the code?”  
“Every two weeks, it includes numbers and letters.”  
“The gate and the house have different codes?”  
“Of course. How did they come in?”  
“We found traces of an attempted break-in at your gate but those traces are older. Last night the gate was opened with a code, according to the record of the security system at three a.m. Two minutes later your house security recorded an entry. The kidnapper came straight from the gate to your door and opened it. We assume they don’t know the code, but have a machine that gives them the right code within seconds.”  
“How did they know where Henry is?” The question was entitled. It was a big house, a dozen rooms in the first and second story, four bedrooms, two bathrooms and no room had a sign on it, like some doors have. A baby for the child’s room or a sticker on the door. All doors looked the same.   
“They must have watched your house, must have seen where Henry’s room is.”  
“His room is to the back, the only way to look inside is from the garden. These people must have been in our garden.”  
“I noticed from the highest story of your neighbor’s house it’s also possible to see the room.”  
“It’s the attic of the Fadis.”  
“You know them?”  
“They’re our friends, a nice Indian family we know for years. We’ve been a couple of times in to their place and as far as I know, the attic is a better storeroom.”  
“We’ll talk to them, if somebody was at their place the last days, checking the electricity or other things. Another possibility is, the kidnapper have a night vision camera. All they have to do is look where two bodies are and where only one is. They don’t have to open doors for it and when the camera is good, they can see where the child is from outside the house.”  
“They are professionals.”  
“We’re afraid they are. You celebrated the birth of your son in your shop?”  
“Yes. Why?”  
“Are there any place you go regularly? Where did you take Henry every day?”  
“To my parent’s place, they live four blocks away. I walked with him there every morning so he had some fresh air. Them my mom looked after him while I had a look at the shop, I wanted to be back at work in three weeks, but I’m better with the books so I had a look over them for a few minutes every day. My mom came with Henry down and we drove to our place, prepared lunch. In the afternoon we took him out again, a friend of mine had her baby five months ago and we visit each other a lot. Henry and her daughter are supposed to go together to school later.” She bit on her lips. Plans. Plans for her baby, she had no idea if they could ever realize them. “Do you think they watched us?”  
“Probably. It seems like these people watch their victims, learn what they do when and make their plan to strike.”  
“What are they doing with the babies? I read in the newspaper, they’re selling them? To whom? Are they…?” Mister Morrison didn’t finish the question.   
“We have no evidence they’re pedophiles, Sir. At the moment it looks like they kidnap the babies and sell them to rich couples, who want a baby. Couples, who order a certain type of baby, a certain age, sex, race.”  
“They are babies and not a goods you order and sell. Where are those couple? Here in the States? In California?”  
“The web page is in Asia, we have no idea where the contact men are. But we doubt the babies will be sold to couples in Los Angeles. It’s too dangerous. Your son might look a lot like his father later and somebody, who knows you, could notice this.”  
“They get sold into another country?”  
“Maybe. Or somewhere else in the States. When they stay in the country it’s easier to get them to their new parents. No border control.”  
“People must notice when their neighbors suddenly have a baby.”  
“These couples will pretend the woman is pregnant for a few months, I doubt they can make contact and have the baby two days later. So far we weren’t able to contact the people of the web page. Our IT experts pretended a few times, they were interest couples and nobody contacted them. It’s possible these people wait a few weeks before they contact the couple, tell them to prepare the arrival by making the world believe they’re pregnant and a few months later they get the baby. When you have a one week old baby people can’t tell the exact age. Before you get the baby you vanish a few days, let everybody believe you’re in hospital, deliver the baby and when you come back home, you’re the mother of a baby and all people will believe, it’s your baby.”  
“They’re doing this for a long time?”  
“We think they started their ‘company’ in Asia and expand to the States. But also to Russia, Arabia and Europe. Wherever rich people want a baby and are willing to pay a lot of money. The closer they are to their customers, the easier is the delivery. As hard as it sounds, for them it’s only a business.”  
“Why can’t nobody stop them?”  
“LAPD works with the FBI and Interpol together.”  
“This group must have a lot of money and with a lot of money you can buy security. And cops.”  
“There’ll always be dirty cops, unfortunately. Like you have corruption in every business.”  
“Sure but who can guarantee us your detective outside isn’t bought by these men?”  
“She’s a mother herself, believe me, she wants these men behind bars. Nobody can promise they won’t start to kidnap older children, that makes her child a target itself.”  
“Do you have children?”  
“No, but a very good friend of mine is a mother since Monday and the kidnapper have been to her place. Fortunately she wasn’t alone at home so they left and when they came back, we relocated her and her fiancé, so all the kidnapper did was destroying the house – which is bad enough but better than getting close to the baby.  
I do have a personal interest in getting these men.”  
“What about your colleague?”  
“He’s the fiancé of my friend, it was his house.”   
Mister Morrison looked at his wife. It was good for them to hear, the people who were there to help them, really cared. It gave them strength and made them trust the police and the CSI team. The reason why Sofia told them about Greg and the break in. They weren’t corrupted, they weren’t bought, they were victims too. 

“Hey, what are you doing here?” Sara greeted Don. It was four in the afternoon, she had been to the supermarket on her way back home from work and didn’t expect Don around the house. Not this early.   
“I live here.” He took two six packs of water out of her car.   
“Of course, I thought you’d be at work. I got the AMBER alert.”  
“It’s not a homicide case, I worked my homicide case and closed it. Why did you buy this much?” The whole car was filled with drinks, food and boxes.   
“Christmas is coming and the closer it gets, the fuller are the supermarket. I bought enough drinks and food for the next two weeks. The only thing we have to get are some fresh veggies and fruits and for that we can go to the local fruit and veggie shop. The big supermarket is off the list for the rest of the year.”  
“Did you also buy Christmas sweets?”  
“They are all in the box, I’ll play Santa this year and surprise you with sweets.”  
“You know we don’t have much space? The fridge is full and the storage room under the staircase too.” He carried the next two six packs to the garage.   
“Use the garage. It was a discount. Half price. So were the bucket with oranges.”  
“How many did you buy?”  
“Five.”  
“Five buckets of oranges?”  
“Yes, we’ll have a lot of orange juice the next days and Mark said, he can make orange jam out of it. And other fruits, so I bought a few more and empty jars. He’ll be busy the next days and we’ll have enough jam for a year or so.”  
“Babies in the house turn you into a housewife. Where’s the beer? Or is that off limit because it's not healthy enough?”  
“Two boxes are in the trunk, I didn’t forget the beer.”  
“Potato chips?”  
“Also in the trunk…no, on the backseat.”  
“You bought all we need. And much more.” The last two six packs of water. When he put everything close to the wall it was possible to use the garage for the car too. Lucky for them the garages were big and except for bikes and some tools there was nothing inside.   
“You bought cake!”   
“Of course. We’ll put it in the freezer and don’t have to worry about it Christmas. Oh, I invited Shane over for Christmas. He didn’t find a trip to Miami he could afford, his friends are all away and since his girlfriend left him, he’s a little bit down. I’d rather not have him sit home alone.”  
“We’ll be at work.”  
“Yes, he comes over when we’re back, or maybe earlier and takes the dogs out for a walk. Or joins Jules and Tanya when they go out. Their bodyguard.”  
“Shane isn’t the kind of guy you take as a bodyguard. Not with this hair.”  
“Wait until you see his new hair.”  
“Bright pink with apple green?”  
“Almost.”   
“Hey, did you rob a shop?” Tanya came out through the garage door.   
“Yes, do you want to help us hide the evidence?”  
“Sure. Where do you want what?”  
“The oranges have to go to Mark, like all other fruits. He’ll make jam out of it.”  
“How many oranges did you buy?”  
“I didn’t count them, only the buckets.”  
“Funny woman.” Tanya took two buckets and carried them inside.   
“We can sell buckets.”  
“A garage sale this time? Why not, the attic sale was fun and got some money. And there are a few things left from my Ebay evening.”  
“Wait a few weeks and Greg adds baby clothes to the sale while Jules has a lot of clothes, she doesn't wear anymore.” Don laughed.   
“Probably. We should really do a garage sale in April or May. I planed to add them to Ebay again but a garage sale is more fun and I’m sure you have stuff some too. We take a hot day and sell some lemonade too.”  
“Yeah, I’ve two boxes with things I don’t need anymore and couldn’t get myself over to throw them away. And there are still a lot of boxes above your bedroom. Sofia kept so many things, she doesn’t use. I was upstairs with her when she looked for Ebay things. If you can talk her into giving them away, we’ve more space.”  
“I tell her, her accountant will be happy about the money and might allow her to invest some money in her house again.”  
“Again? What does she want to do this time? Will we get a pool?”  
“No.”  
“But?”  
“Maybe a room above the garages.” Why not test the water if he was interested in a new room. If he didn't want one, they could stop thinking about it because the location only allowed a room, that was connected to his room.   
“A room above the garages? She wants more housemates? Or do I get a second room?”  
“Do you want a second room?”  
“Good question. A second room would give me the opportunity to have a living room and a bedroom. I could impress women more when I don’t live in one room like a college student. A big living room with an impressive view over the reservoir. Very romantic in the evening, when the sun goes down. A little balcony, drinking my after work beer there in the evening.”  
“You need a second room to impress women? Isn’t your smile enough?” Tanya asked when she came back and heard the last words.   
“Not anymore. Women above thirty want more than just a smile. And I could have a room for a great stereo system.”  
“With Playstation or Nintendo?”  
“Both. Plus a new TV, seriously big screen.”  
“Dolby surround?”  
“HD.”  
“I’ve the latest Wii and some really nice racing and sport games.”  
“Seriously? Did you steal them from your hubby? As a revenge?”  
“No, I bought them, he hated them.”  
“Where are they?”  
“Somewhere in my stuff.”  
“Get them out, we have to play a few rounds.”  
“For that we need some space in the living room. A bigger screen would help too.”  
“Sara, I want a second room! You provide your Wii Tanya and I’ll get the rest sorted out. We’ll have nights full of games and fights.”  
“I know a few things about nights full of fights, it’s called divorce. You will lose.”  
“This time it’s not about marriage, it’s about fun. Racing, sport.”  
“A lot of beer and pizza with the sport? Plus some cool music in the background?”  
“This woman is great!” He grinned and got the last bag out of Sara’s car. “We should get her a room, the second one you have upstairs. She fits in perfectly.”  
“I’m sure you say that about all women who come here.”  
“Actually he only said this once, when Sofia asked him, if it’s okay when I move in.” Sara smiled. She was so glad she didn’t refuse the offer of the blonde.   
“I feel honored but I have my new apartment.”  
“Where?”  
“Silver Lake.”  
“You stay here? Cool.”  
“My cousin wants to stay here, I thought I want to be close to her. Wherever they’ll find their new house, my apartment is just across the street from the dog park. A nice view of the reservoir and the dogs.”  
“That’s close.”  
“We can have the nights with beer and pizza.”  
“And Jules and Greg decided they want to move out of the house?”  
“Yes.”  
“Don’t the Howards move out, Sara?” Don closed the trunk.   
“The Howards?”  
“The family down the road. I mean he told me, they want to move away, he got a job in San Diego. I doubt they keep their house.”  
“There isn’t a ‘for sale’ sign in the garden. When did he tell you?”  
“Last week? I take the dogs for a run and ask him on the way back.”  
“Mind if I join you for the run?”  
“Not at all.”  
“Okay, we’re done here, lets get changed and have a run. I take it you stay here tonight?”  
“I’ll have dinner with you, yes. Kyle works late, there’s no point in sitting in his apartment alone. We can run, have dinner and wait for your girlfriend. It will be later for her too.”  
“I’m afraid so.” Sara didn’t expect Sofia back before six or seven. Twelve hours of work, not the amount her lover was supposed to work but under the circumstances there was no choice.   
***  
No good news, no news at all. After twelve hours of working around and in the Morrison’s house, taking evidence to the lab and working on some of it, Sofia and Greg called it a day. Their heads hurt, they were tired and weren’t able to focus that good anymore. It was better to go home now before they overlooked the tiny piece of evidence, they needed.   
“You look tired, Honey.” Her father hugged her. “Sit down and have dinner. I made your favorite steak and three different kinds of dips for your French fries.”  
“Thanks.” She smiled. He always knew how to surprise her, always remembered what she loved most.   
“Sara is upstairs, I’m sure she comes down when she sees your car.”  
“Did you buy all oranges in the city?” Her kitchen looked like an orange farm. Everywhere were the fruits, peeled, whole, as juice and the smell from the oven told her, also in the big pot.   
“No, Sara did. I make jam for you, orange jam. Some with ginger and some with fig. And a special dozen with whiskey and tequila sunrise jam.”  
“Tequila sunrise jam? Never heard of it but it sounds great. I love whiskey orange jam. It’s jam and not marmalade, isn’t it?”  
“Yes, I know you like the sweet version.”  
“Thanks. What did you do before you took over the kitchen?”  
“Your mother and I went to Venice for lunch, had a little walk on the beach, took care of the twins and followed the police radio. You have a new case.”  
“Yes.”  
“The kidnapper or a copy cat?”  
“I found the chloroform tissue, we never released it to the press, this should be not a copy cat case. And the parents stroke me like they really suffer. Both of them.”  
“How did the kidnapper bypass the security system?”  
“The IT expert? Like with the security in the hospitals. One of them knows what he’s doing and how we gets the others inside. That’s why our guys can’t find them on the internet. There is no trace that goes to L.A. from the web page.”  
“You’ll solve the case.”  
“I’m not sure anymore.”  
“Of course you will, you’re my daughter. You know how to handle complicated things.”  
“Like your wife?”  
“Don’t let her hear this.” He laughed.   
“No, it’s our secret.”  
“What secret?” Sara asked when she came into the kitchen. She had heard Sofia come back home and when her lover didn’t come up, she assumed the blonde was in the kitchen, having dinner.  
“We can’t tell you, it’s a secret.”  
“You don’t get a kiss.”  
“Blackmailing doesn’t work.” Sofia grabbed Sara, pulled her close and kissed her. “I kiss you if you don’t kiss me.”   
“Not fair.”  
“That’s life.”  
“Where’s Greg?”  
“Should be with Jules, he went straight up to see her. Why?”  
“Don might have found a house for Greg and Jules.”  
“Where?”  
“That’s my secret.”  
“She’s the one who isn’t fair, right dad?”  
“Maybe you can deal with your secrets. I know both of them, I can stay out of this.”  
“You could tell me.”  
“Both?”  
“No, hers.”  
“No, I won’t Sofia.”  
“Bugger. Okay. Our secret is, mom is complicated.”  
“That’s not a secret.”  
“The secret is, we don’t tell her we think this way.”  
“She knows.”  
“Will you stop ruin our hopes? Where is the house?”  
“Down the road. The Howards move to San Diego and luckily Mister Howard told Don last week. We went there when we came back from our run around the reservoir, their house is up to sale. Greg and Jules can have a look at it.”  
“I know the house, have been in there once. Kitchen, living room, office, guest room and guest toilet on the first story, three bedrooms and two bathrooms upstairs.”  
“Was it a crime scene?”  
“No, I got a house tour and as a good detective, lieutenant and CSI I remember details. It’s part of all my jobs.”  
“Sounds like a house they’re looking for.”  
“Just the fact it’s in the same road we live should make them take it. Close to us, we can have the babies often over. And it’s in a good condition, they shouldn’t need too much time for the renovation and have it ready to move in soon. Not that I want them out any time soon, they can stay forever if they want.”  
“You, my dear, need a conversation with your accountant.”  
“Why?” Sofia looked like she had an appointment with the dentist. “What happened? Did you find anything bad when you looked over our papers?”  
“No, Don wants a second room.”  
“Huh?”  
“When we emptied the car we talked about stuff, that we should have a garage sale in April or May, so you can give your accountant some money and he might allow you to build a room on the garage. Don wants it, a second room, a living room. He says he can’t impress women with just one room, that makes him look like a college boy.”  
“Since when does he need a second room to impress women?”  
“A similar question did Tanya ask. He needs a bigger TV and a sunset view over the reservoir.”  
“I understand the view, not the TV.”   
“Video games. They’re both crazy for video games and plan long video games nights with race and sport games.”  
“A second room…his rent increases then.”  
“He’s aware of that.”  
“Whatever it takes to keep him here. Where is he?”  
“Using the gym.”  
“I should go there too. My physiotherapist isn’t happy when I tell him, I barely have time to do my exercises. Or see him.”  
“You’re next appointment is on Monday. Also with your psychotherapist.”  
“Wahoo.” The blonde stuck out her tongue. No need to remind her of these appointments.   
“Hey, I’ve to see my therapist also on Monday.”  
“One, not two.”  
“I buy some muffins for you.”  
“Better. Buy plenty, we need them for Christmas.”  
“I can order three dozen, some cake and donuts. All the other Christmas stuff is here. Including a cake.”  
“How comes you went shopping?”  
“The closer we come to Christmas the fuller the shops.”  
“Do you have all my presents?”  
“You get me, if you complain, you’re in trouble.”  
“Sometimes she reminds me of mom.” Sofia said to her father.   
“The good thing is, you love your mother.”  
“I do.” She placed her dirty plate in the dish washer. “Why don’t we have a look if Don is still working out and when he does, I join him. If not, we can talk with him about the room.”   
“Okay. Or do you need some help here, Mark?”  
“No Sara, I’m fine. Thanks.”  
“No problem.” Sara took Sofia’s hand and walked with her upstairs. Don wasn’t working out anymore so Sofia took the change to change into something more casual and went downstairs with Sara. After they knocked on Don’s door they were called in.   
“Hey detective, how are you?”  
“My ex boss, how are you? Do you need help with your case? I’m available tomorrow.”  
“I hope we won’t get a homicide case anymore. The last time you came over to help our kidnapping case turned into homicide.”  
“Not my fault.” He dropped on his bed. “Are there a bunch of actors in our living room again?”  
“Not yet. Do they annoy you?”  
“No, it’s quite entertaining to watch them and I am barely here.”  
“But your own living room would be cooler?”  
“Sara told you? We were just fooling around.”  
“You can have the room, Don.”  
“Your accountant will kill you.”  
“He’ll increase your rent.”  
“Double it?”  
“Almost.”  
“Sounds good to me. Can you build a room on the garages? ”  
“Yes. Gives you a five by six sized room, do you want a balcony with it?”  
“A balcony?”  
“Yeah, we can build a carport in front of the garages, gives us place for two cars to park under. I’m sure Sara’s car is happy when it’s get a roof and Sara can actually breathe when she enters her car in summer time.”  
“Nice idea. Will it increase my rent?”  
“Yes Honey.”  
“Okay, it’s worth. Woah Don, you’ll get a monster of a balcony. With this size you can entertain more than one woman.”  
“I know, I heard that before." He smirked.   
"The balcony, Mister Universe." Sara chuckled. She was sure Don didn't talk about it anymore, little Mister Show-Off.   
"Sure. No more need for the garden.”  
“What? Hey, our garden parties are important! You can’t stay on your balcony and don't join us anymore!”   
“Or we spill cold water on you from our balcony. When you get a second room, we can have a bit balcony upstairs…or also a room? A sun room?”  
“Honey, when we want a sun room we won’t have holidays away for a while because I can’t have both. It’s either the sun room or holidays for the next three years. Pick what you prefer.”  
“Holidays.”  
“Thanks. We let Don’s second room build in a way that we have the opportunity to add a room on top of it, more is not possible at the moment. We need to go back to Vegas, gamble and win a lot of money. If we win a million I build you a pool in the garden.”  
“And kick all your housemates out because you don’t need the money anymore?” Don asked amused.   
“No, I’d never kick you out, Don. In fact, I hope you’ll stay forever with us. But I’m afraid when you find your Mrs. Right you’ll move.”  
“Or she moves in…if you give her a kitchen, not every woman is so easy to please like your girlfriend. Some women want more privacy when they cook.”  
“To me it’s important Sofia that is with me, that there are other people around when we have breakfast doesn’t bother me too much. Besides, we have our own kitchen upstairs.”  
“With a huge living room there’s enough space for a kitchen-ette. Plus we have another room for guests in case we’ll be busy like we’re now.”  
“And you don’t have to give up your bedroom anymore.”  
“For my step parents I’d do it again.”  
“Thanks.”  
“They are pretty good with the twins. I can see them being only grandparents when they’re retired. Spoiling grandparents. I bet they give their grandchildren whatever they ask for, let them do what they want.”  
“Probably…Don, do you want a child?”  
“Me? Don’t I need a woman for that?” He laughed. “My therapist and me worked out I’ve to stop looking for…for somebody who isn’t like Jess and at the same time is exactly like her. No woman, no baby.”  
Sofia looked at Sara. She didn’t want to wait any longer, she wanted to talk to Don now. Why waste time, think about possibilities when you could have your answer straight away or at least faster?   
“I…we want to ask you something, you don’t have to answer right away, in fact, we want you to think about it for a while, so you’re pretty sure about your answer and no matter how the answer is, it doesn’t change a thing between us, okay?”  
“Okay.”  
“As you know we’re talking about having a child together and I want to get pregnant. Last night I had a look for a sperm bank and how it works. What we both would prefer is when you, if you can imagine, be the father of our child.” Gosh, that worked out a little bit bumpy. Sofia wasn’t sure if her sentences made sense at all, if they confused Don or put pressure on him.   
“Me? The father of your child?”  
“Yes. Think about it, we don’t need an answer now. And if you don’t like our idea, we won’t be mad.”  
“How much time do I have to think about it?”  
“As long as you want. And my parents have no idea we talked about it, so no pressure from mom.”  
“Okay, I will think about it.”  
“Thanks.” Sofia hugged her friend. She knew they asked a lot, they surprised him and it was only fair to give him all the time he needed to think about their request, get used to the thought. It would change a lot in his life.   
“And now I pack a few things and drive over to Kyle. If you need me at your scene, give me a call. When you’re free for lunch you can call as well.”  
“Both sounds good, I give you a call.”  
“I say good night to your parents, Tanya and the Oscar stars of tomorrow if they're in. See you tomorrow. Sara, if you plan to buy another car load of whatever, let me know, I help you carry it inside. Otherwise I'll be back for dinner.”  
“Thanks, but I’m done with shopping.” Sara laughed. "See you tomorrow night, take Kyle with you if he has not to work."  
“You never know what’s on discount out of the blue.”  
“Well, if I find beer on discount I buy a few boxes.”  
“Good decision.”  
“She thinks like a cop.” Sofia chuckled. “Come on Honey, time to go to bed. We’ve to work tomorrow and I’m afraid there’s a twelve hours day waiting for me.”  
“Will you have some breaks?”  
“Hopefully my lunch date with Don. These people are VIPs, they expect us around all the time, want a lot of answers and the ones we give them, they don’t like.”  
“Tell them they can choose between an honest answer they might not like and a lie. And only because they’re VIPs they won’t get a special treatment.” Sara grumbled. Why did some people think they deserved more than other people? All parents, who had lost their babies, were important. The police wanted each baby back.   
“Unfortunately they know some politics and will contact them.”  
“Snobs.”  
“Yes…it’s good you don’t work this case, you might get into their face.”  
“I’d tell them what I think when they act like their baby is more important than one or all of the others. Politics will never be my strength.”  
“No. It’s something I love about you. Your sense for justice, to see all people equal.”  
“What else do you love?” Sara grinned.  
“Well…I can show you as soon as we’re in bed.”  
“Deal. Hurry up!” Sara pushed Sofia up the last stairs. They had no time to lose. 

18th of December

“I’m sorry for being away another Sunday.” Sofia embraced Sara when she came home. Another ten hours of work, no success, no time with her girlfriend, no time with her parents, who barely saw her during their stay here.   
“I worked too.”  
“Yes, seven hours, not ten. You’re back since two, spent time with my parents, which should be my job and cleaned our bedroom, kitchenette and bathroom. How can I make this all up to you?”  
“Kiss me.”  
“You deserve more than only a kiss.”  
“Your kiss is better than anything, plus I never said I want only one kiss, I want at least a dozen.” Sara pulled the blonde into her arms and kissed her gently. “Your lips make up for everything. I love you.”  
“I love you too.”  
“Why don’t you have a shower, eat something and I take our dogs out for a run? Your parents are out, they got tickets for a movie from Tony. A premiere.”  
“Wow, how did he get them?”  
“A friend of a friend plays a small part in the movie and he gave Tony the tickets. He has to work, his real life job demands more time and your parents deserve a night out.”  
“True. Two more days before they leave, I hope I can manage to have a day off, spend some time with them and you.”  
“If not we’ll drive over the next time we have two or three days off. I’m not afraid of visiting them anymore.” Sara grinned.   
“That’s good.” Sofia smiled and kissed her lover. “What would I do without you?”  
“Having one of these actress or model bitches around you, adoring you and telling you all the words you want to hear.”  
“Unlikely. I’d sit here alone and miss the one who is meant to be with me. You.”  
“We’re meant for each other.”   
“Yes we are.”   
Placing her head on the blonde’s shoulder the brunette closed her eyes. She missed their time on holidays. The whole day just for themselves, no work, nothing that got their attention away from each other.   
“One day when they allow us to get married, I’ll pop the question. You’ll be a Mrs. Ranger.”  
“Mrs. Ranger? Sounds nice. You’ll be a Mrs. CSI.”  
“Does that mean your accountant is then mine too?”  
“Yes.” Sofia grinned.   
“I might think about the wedding idea, it might be my financial downfall.”  
“Shouldn’t love be more important than finances?”  
“Tell your accountant.”  
“You don’t want me to give him my love.”  
“No, he gets most of your money, that’s enough.”  
“Leaves the love for you.”  
“Exactly what I want. Go and have a shower, I take the dogs and let them have some fun at the dog park. There’re vegetables, potatoes and meat in the fridge, you only have to heat it up.”  
“Thanks. The next time I’m home first I’ll cook something.”  
“Tell your parents, they cooked. I think your dad cooked a lot of dishes, our freezer is full with little container, labeled and organized from vegetables to meat. When we don’t have time to cook or are too lazy we can simply take one of them, heat it up and eat.”  
“We should invite dad more often.”  
“And your mom.”  
“Yeah, she can clean the house.”  
“You better don’t let her hear this.” Sara laughed, kissed Sofia again and left the room. Time to get the dogs out for their walk. 

After her shower and the food Sofia walked over to the second bedroom and knocked quietly on the door. Instead of calling her inside Jules came out of the room.   
“Hey, the twins and Greg are asleep.”   
“Oh, sorry.”  
“No need to be sorry, we let them sleep for a while.”   
“Don’t you want to lay down too?”  
“I slept this afternoon for three hours when your parents took care of the twins. They’re a big help.”  
“Well, their daughter has no time for them, they’re happy they’ve somebody to take care of.” Sofia got two bottles of juice out of the fridge. Having a beer while Jules was forced to drink juice seemed to be unfair and weird and for a coffee was it too late.   
“They know their daughter is a hard working woman and chases a baby kidnapper group.”  
“Yeah. Where’s Tanya?”  
“She and Don are having a fight, or a few fights, about who is the better Playstation and Wii player. Like teenager. Video games, beer and potato chips.”  
“Sounds absolutely good to me.” Knowing the living room was full with people and the gym wasn’t a good place to sit down and relax they went into Sofia’s bedroom.   
“Did you have any success at work today?”  
“No, nothing. We tried to lure them with pregnant looking undercover cops, cops with baby buggies and baby dolls inside, no reaction. They walk around the city since four days, it’s like they know it’s a trap.”  
“Damn. How can they know?”  
“My guess is they watch them and at one point, when the officer goes home, she takes off her belly and goes shopping, to sport, whatever. They must be pretty good in observing people, I bet they know exactly how a pregnant woman moves.”  
“Did they answer when you tried to contact them for a baby?”  
“No. My colleagues tried it from a computer in an internet shop, nothing.”  
“It’s really strange. They must have their eyes everywhere.”  
“Maybe that’s part of their secret. They find a woman, they’re interested in and put up a camera. Makes the observation easier. Then they strike, take the camera and nobody will ever know how they found everything out.” It was an idea, a strange one but Sofia would give it some thoughts when she was back at work tomorrow. “How was your day? To come to another topic.”  
“We put the house up for sale today.”  
“This fast?”  
“Yes. I went there this noon with Tanya, we got two cars full of things out, will go there again tomorrow and get the last things to my parent’s place.”  
“Did you have a look at the Howard’s house?”  
“Yes. A nice house, the price is a little bit more than we want to spend, maybe we can talk with them about it. If they get down we might take it and live really close to you.”  
“The house is perfect because it’s so close to our place.”  
“It’s bigger than we planed our house.”  
“You have another baby and it’s not too big anymore.” Three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a guest room with bathroom downstairs sounded perfect to Sofia and not too big.   
“Nice try. What happened to your baby wish?”  
“We asked Don if he wants to be the father. It’s unofficial at the moment, we haven’t told my parents, you’re the first one who hears about it.”  
“Wow. What did he say?”  
“Nothing. We told him to think about it for a few days. He has to make the decision he wants, has to think about it. It will change his life, when he’s the father we want him involved. If he wants it this way and I’m sure he does.”  
“What if he decides not to be the father?”  
“We’ll go to a sperm bank.”  
“Are you both sure about the baby?”  
“Yes. Sara wants it as much as I do. Since she had Eric in her arms she is in love with him and doesn’t worry about her being a good mother anymore. Your son does real magic, just like his mother did.”  
“I’m sure he’ll be proud when you tell him this in a few years. What about your body? Are you fit enough to be pregnant?”  
“I’ve your mother looking after me, nothing can happen. There are no reasons why I shouldn’t be pregnant, the amputation happened six months ago, when there aren’t any little infections I’m healthy and the only thing we’ve to take care of is that I use my crutches more often later in the pregnancy to support my legs a little bit.”  
“And you mind?”  
“Busy.”  
“You’ve an appointment with your therapist tomorrow, don’t you?”  
“I’ve no time for this shit, we need to work on our case, I sent him a message I won’t make it.” She had told Sara she’d go to her therapies but there was no point in wasting time on her psychotherapy. It was enough when she went to her physio-therapist.   
“A waste of time? Exactly what Sara said about seeing me.”  
“She changed her mind about you quickly. It’s not the same.”  
“Why is that?” Jules leant back and sipped on her juice.   
“Because she had the best therapist.”  
“And your therapist is bad?”  
“Yes.”  
“Okay. So he doesn’t see you’re not all right?”  
“I am all right.”  
“Didn’t you just called me the best therapist two sentences ago? Now you doubt me, think I’m stupid and blind.”  
“You’re neither stupid nor blind.”  
“You’re defensive.”  
“Are you playing shrink? Do you miss your office this much?”  
Jules looked at Sofia without answering. The blonde knew herself her reaction was way too harsh.   
“Sorry.”  
“I don’t want to shrink you, I don’t want to tell you what to do, I worry about you, Sofia. You’re my friend and I can see something is wrong. Yes, I am a psychologist and I am trained to see those things, even when I’m not working. Of course I can ignore them, pretend I don’t see them, but when you see something is wrong with a friend, you’d try to help too.”  
“Jules…fuck…”  
“You can tell me to leave you alone, Sofia. I am not your therapist, I’m your friend and as your friend I’ll respect your wish.”  
“You never left Sara alone.”  
“She was my patient and it was my job to make her face her problems. Otherwise I would be a bad therapist.”  
The blonde dropped backwards on her bed and closed her eyes. Why did the brunette see this? Didn’t she hide it? Hide it good. Even managed to keep her problem a secret from her lover, which was wrong, Sofia was aware of that. They weren’t supposed to have secrets from each other.   
“Something is wrong with me.” The blonde started, waited for a question, a protest and when nothing came, she continued. “I don’t know what and why. And I’m scared it might…it might make me not suitable being a CSI anymore and…I can’t be a cop anymore, can’t do what I always wanted to do and when …when I lose the only alternative that makes me almost as happy as being a cop, I don’t know…I don’t know what to do, how to go on.”  
Jules took Sofia’s hand. “Do you want to tell me what makes you think you can’t be a CSI anymore? What I know you’re doing an amazing job, Greg loves working with you and says, you haven’t forgotten anything.”  
“I can never be a cop again.”  
“Your boss told you you’re always welcome, can always come back. Due to your leg you can’t work the streets anymore and I know, you are not made to work inside but you can work as a cop. If you miss it too much you can go back, can have your old colleagues back. You even can become a captain.”  
“A desk captain.”  
“Still a captain.”  
“Not in my eyes and…I might even not pass the test for a desk cop anymore.”  
“Not because of your leg.”  
“No.”  
“What scares you?”  
“It’s ridiculous.”  
“No. If it was ridiculous it wouldn’t effect you this much. It’s serious.”  
“I guess you heard a lot of strange stories in all those years as a therapist.”  
“There aren’t strange stories.”  
“I know one…and could use a beer.”  
“Alcohol doesn’t help.” Jules pulled Sofia in her arms. “You’re strong enough to talk without having beer loosen your tongue.”  
“I feel stupid.”  
“I can assure you, you’re not stupid and you can’t say anything that will make me change my mind.”  
Sofia wasn’t sure about this. Then again, like she said before, Jules had heard a lot of ridiculous stories in her job and knew how to handle them. And even when she felt stupid, it didn’t mean she was stupid.  
“It’s…it’s a little bit like it was with Sara, when she came here. You know, the first days, when she had the bouts…I don’t have bouts…but…I noticed when she lived in the motel, she was really…nervous isn’t the right word…she flinched when there was a loud noise. I noticed that I…I kind of do the same…gosh Jules, it sounds so ridiculous.”  
“You get scared when you hear a loud noise. Like it was loud when the Hollywood and Highland Center exploded.”   
“Yes. Two days ago I found myself scared for a moment when I heard a shot. So stupid, I was practicing with the gun, of course other people are around, shoot. For a few seconds I was away with my thoughts and when not too far from me somebody shot the target I flinched like I was in danger. How can I work law enforcement when I’m scared? When all it takes to scare me is a shot.”  
“There’s a reason why you scared of loud noise, the last time there was loud noise you lost half of your leg left, were in coma for a few days and your life changed.”  
“I can’t work when I’m such a whiny baby. Imagine I’m at a crime scene, there’s wind, a door bangs and I jump for cover because I’m scared and destroy evidence. It’s important to keep a cool head.”  
“You got told when you woke up that you’re likely suffer from a light PTSD, I guess that’s what makes you react this way. Why can’t you talk with your therapist about it?”  
“Because if he tells my boss they might decide I can’t work anymore and send to a desk, in a quiet room to organize folders and make coffee for real cops.”  
“He doesn’t talk to your boss, it’s against the rules.”  
“He does write them something.”  
“Yes, they pay his bill, he informs them you’re attend, there are no reasons why you shouldn’t work. If he thinks different about the work he’d put you on sick leave, no matter who pays the bills. Like I did with Sara. When you’re not fit a psychologist will do the same like a physician and let you stay at home.”  
“Great, then he can just tell my boss to fire me because I’m crazy and can’t work anymore. Sir, your CSI has to stay at home, she’s scared of noise, she’s useless for you. Why don’t you just fire her?”  
“Like your lover.” Jules sighed. “You and Sara, you have the same ideas when it comes to psychologists and sick leave and you both prefer not to see the therapist anymore, ignore your problem instead of working on it. It won’t just disappear Sofia, it came for a reason and it will stay if you don’t work on it. With somebody who is an expert. You don’t call a gardener to work on evidence just because the crime scene is in the garden.”  
“I don’t want to talk with him about it.”  
“Then you need another therapist and don’t tell me it won’t help anyway. Your girlfriend feels much better, she did a lot of things with the help of therapy. You have the best example why you should continue in front of your eyes, don’t give me any bullshit about, it’s hocus-pocus and doesn’t work. She made it through the trial, she talked to Sam. Of course a lot of this was possible because of you, because you give her strength but also her therapy. Change the therapist but don’t give up therapy.”  
“He does hit the spots that hurt.”  
“But you don’t trust him.”  
“No. Not when it comes to…to this. When I’m afraid I might lose my job.”  
“There are two possibilities: first, like I said, change your therapist or second, tell him about it, let him explain what he does, why he does it. Make him understand you worry, you doubt. He will take your serious, won’t be mad and talk about it with you. If you feel like you still can’t trust him after this conversation, you can leave and find somebody else. But don’t call off therapy, it wouldn’t be good for you.”  
“I want you as my therapist.”  
“I’m not available for you.”  
“But I trust you.”  
“Which is a big compliment, but it wouldn’t work out. You know it, we had the same problem with Sara, there was a reason why I stayed away from her for a while, if we take it strictly, I should have not have contact with her for an even longer time. I can recommend a therapist to you, but when the department pays, your new therapist will send them the same information like the one now does.”  
“Maybe I’m better with a female therapist. Develop a little crush on her so I’ll love to go to therapy.”  
“You’re in love with Sara, I doubt you’ll develop a crush on another woman. And you don’t want it anyway.”  
“No, I want only my Sara.” Sofia sighed. “Okay, I’ll talk to him. Is it also not possible that you join me?”  
“That depends on what your therapist says. What do you want me to do there?”  
“I don’t know…have a look if he does everything right?”  
“He won’t like that.”  
“Do we have to tell him?”  
“Yes.”  
“Because you’re supposed to be honest to your therapist.”  
“Exactly.”  
“First I’ll be honest to my girlfriend. After I talked to you now I should talk to Sara when she’s back. When she was your patient, she did tell you things before she told them me, didn’t she?”  
“Can’t tell you.”  
“Oh come on, you’re not her therapist anymore.”  
“No, but I’m not allowed to tell you anything about her therapy.”  
“She signed the paper for you to talk to me.”  
“Ask her when you talk to her.” Jules grinned.   
“Yeah…do you think I can get back to normal? Without being this…nervous when there’s a loud sound?”  
“Yes, I’m very sure about this.”  
“Would you tell me if you had doubts?”  
“Yes I would. I don’t lie to my friends.”  
“Thanks.” A baby cry let them look towards the other bedroom.   
“You can hear them quite loud, how can you manage to sleep?”  
“With all the hours I work it’s hard to keep me awake. Your twins don’t ruin my beauty sleep. It’s Jorja, who is crying, right?”  
“Yes. I should have a look what my daughter wants.”  
“She wants to wake up daddy and her brother, get the attention of her mother and have me carrying her around.”  
“Babysitter Sofia?”  
“Yes.”  
“You know, I won’t exchange one of my children for yours?”  
“Never thought of that…Sara might want Eric.”  
“She’ll be way too much in love with your baby to think of Eric.”  
“There’s no way my girlfriend forgets her godson. You saw her, I get jealous when she holds him.”  
“Cute.” Jules got up and pulled Sofia up too. “Come on, we have a look at them. I allow you to practice with my babies before you have your own one.”  
“Thanks. And thanks for…listen and making me talk.”  
“I miss my work just like you did when you had to stay at home.”  
“Your patients will miss you too. I would if I were in their shoes.”  
“Lucky you, you have me living in your house.”  
“And soon next door if I’m really lucky.” Sofia smiled. Jules and Greg would be the perfect neighbors. 

“How mad are you on a scale from one for not to ten for very?” Sofia asked after she told Sara all the things she told Jules before and also the fact, that she talked to the psychologist first and not with her girlfriend. She knew from herself, she had been a little bit disappointed and jealous when she found out there were things, Sara told Jules when she was her therapist and not her. Or she told her things after she talked to Jules.   
“Not mad at all.” Sara kissed Sofia carefully. Between them on the bed lay Eric, asleep. They had taken him over because Jorja seemed to have a bad evening, cried a lot and woke her brother up all the time.   
“I should have told you first, should have told you earlier.”  
“Like I should have talked to you when I was her patient. Jules has something that makes people talk to her, makes them open up to her. I guess that’s a reason why she’s such a great therapist.”  
“Yeah…imagine her in interrogation, she’d make all suspects talk by only offering them a coffee. You can’t learn something like that.”  
“No, you can’t. She’s great and there are no words to describe how happy I am she forgot some rules and became my friend. Made me be the godmother of our baby here.”  
“He’s like a little Jules, I’m also absolutely in love with him.”  
“You’re in love with Jules?”  
“Yes, the same way you are.”  
“That’s a good way.”  
“I’m sorry I didn’t talk to you first. It was stupid, I should know better. Especially after I was jealous when you talked to her first.”  
“The jealousy was pushed away when the brain set in and reminded me, I did the same. Your mom said once to me, it’s normal when you need some time to tell your partner everything, that some things are easier told to somebody you don’t love.”  
“I told her about us talking to Don.”  
“He hasn’t made a decision yet, has he?”  
“No.”  
“We shouldn’t ask for it, wait until he comes to us. If he doesn’t come to us we know, he doesn’t want to be the father and we can go to a sperm bank.”  
“Which would be a pity, he is such a great man and the best father I can imagine for our baby. Only one thing crossed my mind.”  
“What’s that?”  
“I know you don’t want to be pregnant, which is fine with me but…I’d love to have you as the biological mother of our baby. This way it’s really OUR baby. We both have done something to make it alive.”  
“You want my ovum?” In the first moment the thought was strange for Sara and she was tempted to disagree.   
“Yes. To make it our baby. Your ovum in my body for nine month. We’ll both have an influence on it this way.”  
“What happened to our baby with deep blue eyes?”  
“I love your brown eyes and this cute little gap is so sexy…if our babies has it too…I think I might eat it!”  
“Before we can see if our baby is punished with such a gap it will take some time. You won’t eat our child, you make sure it’s fine and nobody hurts it. Otherwise the father and I will get you into serious trouble.”  
“Daddy Don…I really hope he’ll agree. I can’t imagine of a better father for our child.”  
“Neither can I. And I’m sure he wants to be involved, means, he’ll stay here or close to our place. I don’t like the thought of him going back to New York at one point.”  
“I also can’t imagine the house without him. My baby brother.”   
“Maybe your mother threatens him to stay.”  
“I can imagine her doing this.” Sofia laughed quietly. Her mother wanted Don around, just like she did.   
“She loves him.”  
“He lets them stay in his room, he’s great. And for so many other reasons too. You’re lucky I didn’t fall for him.”  
“He’s not woman enough, when you met him, you made the decision, you want to date women.”  
“I could have changed my mind for him.”  
“You could have. But you didn’t because you knew, there’s a woman who will make you happy, who is the one you always wanted.”  
“True…what was her name again?”  
“Hey!” Sara bopped Sofia and pulled her head down by her hair. “Careful.”  
“Sonya? Sandra? Something with ‘S’, I have to check in my little black book again. There are all names of my chicks written down.”  
“How many pages does your little book have?”  
“Hundred? Two hundred? All full of course.”  
“Of course. Where will you sleep tonight?”  
“In your arms.”  
“I don’t think so.”  
“I know it.” Sofia kissed Sara gently. “I love you.”  
“Which number am I?”  
“My number one. The only one.” She pulled the brunette in her arms. As it was possible for her to have somebody else than Sara in her life. Sara, the woman of her life. Her life. There was no thought for somebody else. Only her Sara. 

19th of December

The first of the her two days off. Sara was glad to have some time at home, could have breakfast with Sofia and take the dogs out for a walk afterwards to get some fresh croissants for her guests.   
“I smell fresh brewed coffee.” Mark came into the kitchen.   
“The smell of coffee gets most people out of bed.”  
“It’s the best way to start the day. Oh, what a treat! Croissants.”  
“We walked by a bakery when we were out for a walk and thought, you might like some fresh croissants for breakfast.”  
“I do, thank you very much. Is Sofia gone?”  
“Yeah, she left at seven and hopes she can come home earlier to have some time with you.”  
“She planed to have a day off.”  
“There was a plan with several days off for the last days to have time with you but the case got in the way.”  
“Luckily we all know how life goes when you work law enforcement. When was the last time you had a day off together?”  
“It’s been a while. We need another holiday.”  
“Before you book a vacation you need to get days off and until Sofia hasn’t solved her case, she won’t have days off.” Marie came into the kitchen.   
“I know. Good morning to you.” Sara smiled.  
“Good morning, Darling.” Marie pulled Sara in her arms and kissed her forehead. “It’s good to have you here.”  
“Thanks. How was your movie?”  
“Interesting. Did you have some time alone with Sofia?”  
“No, we had Eric with us, Jorja had her cry night and we wanted him to have a quiet place to sleep.”  
“Practice for my grandchild.”  
“You know the condition, when you want a grandchild, you have to move to Los Angeles and become a fulltime grand-mother. Captain grandmother.”  
“My husband and me will discuss this when we’re back home. But I’m sure that when you and Sofia want a baby, you’ll have it, no matter where we live. And the way I know my daughter she wants a baby, she always wanted a baby, only the right partner was missing until she found you. I know you weren’t the family type, but since you have a godchild, you have changed. Eric has taken away the fear you might do something wrong.”  
“I’m absolutely in love with him.”  
“He is awake, I heard Jules talking to the twins when I came down. Must be their breakfast time too. Shall we get her a croissant upstairs?”  
“She’ll come down when the twins are fed and can go back to bed. Oh no, today is doctor day. They’ve to go and see the doctor, let him check on them.”  
“Does she go there alone?”  
“No, Tanya will join her and Greg will be there too. He starts later, their appointment is at eight, after that he drives them back home and goes to work.”  
“Good. Do you have any plans for the day?”  
“Yes, I want to spend some time with my parents-in-law.” Sara smiled. “It’s a sunny day, I thought we can take the dogs down to the beach, have lunch there before we come back in the afternoon.”  
“Nice plan. What do you think, Mark?”  
“We should join our daughter-in-law and pick up dinner on our way back. Can we leave the twins alone?”  
“Jules and Tanya are here, Tony and Sally too.”  
“In this case lets have breakfast and get started. Unfortunately it’s too cold to have breakfast on the beach, we have to come back in a few months when it’s warmer.”  
“Move to L.A. and you can have breakfast on the beach most times of the year.” Sara said. The more she thought about the possibility of having Marie and Mark around, the more she liked the idea. 

“How are the babies?” Sofia asked when Greg came into the room.  
“Both are fine, healthy and happy. Well, not that happy when the doctor was around.”  
“Nobody is happy when there’s a doctor around.”  
“I’m very happy when my doctor fiancé is around. Can’t ask for somebody better than her and would love to have her with me all night and day.”  
“That’s different, she’s more your fiancé and not your doctor. You don’t love her because of her title, you love her because she’s amazing.”  
“Are you slobbering over my fiancé? You have your own sexy brunette, keep your hands off mine.”  
“I was in bed with your fiancé yesterday. While you were sound asleep with the babies I got her into my bed, was in her arms. What do you say about this?”  
“I hope you told Sara what was bothering you, she deserves to know.”  
“How do you know something was bothering me?”  
“I know Jules, I know her effect on people. Whatever it is, you will tell me when you’re ready, but I hope you told Sara yesterday.”  
She hugged him. “You’re a good fiancé.”  
“Because I’m not jealous?”  
“Because you trust Jules, know she loves you and respect her little secrets.”  
“When Sara tells me something I wouldn’t tell it somebody else. It should go without saying that when a friend confides in you, you keep this for yourself.”  
“I bet it’s not always easy with her job. You can’t sit down in the evening and talk about your jobs, you have no idea what she really does with the clients, when you ask, you’ll get the confidential answer. She can’t tell you about good or bad things, it’s like another world.”  
“She can tell me about her job, about her clients when she leaves out the names. Like I can’t give her any special details about ongoing cases. Nor can you discuss details of our case with Sara …which you of course never do.”  
“Of course not.” Sofia smiled. She didn’t tell Sara much about her cases, only sometimes, when a case got into her, she talked with her lover about it. Mostly because it felt good to talk everything out, have somebody listen and know, this person knew exactly what you felt, what you went through.   
“See. Although we could use her in this case, she has two days off, hasn’t she?”  
“Yes and our boss will never allow her to join us. Her CSI time is over, if we like it or not. We both would prefer to have her here, work with her, she prefers to be a ranger and it makes her happy.”  
“And we’re happy when she’s happy. No, it’s good she’s a ranger, gives her a kind of an every day life, not like our job. We never know when we come home. You plan dinner with your sweetheart and a case gets between you and her. I hope I’ve the chance to invite Jules to dinner around Christmas. She deserves an evening away, a good meal and whatever she wants to do.”  
“Tell me when and I’ll be ready to babysit.”  
“You’re still not sick and tired of the twins? After all the nights they cried and having Eric over last night.”  
“It was nice to have him with us.”  
“He made Sara believe she can take care of a baby, before she had him in her arms, she was somehow unsure around babies. With him it’s like she had never done anything else before.”  
“Yeah, I’m very thankful for that. Makes my baby wish easier to fulfill.”  
“The only reason why she didn’t agree on having a baby with you before, was because she worried about your physical condition. After the coma, the amputation and the stress she wanted to give you a break. Plus you’re both working.”  
“And my mom will be retired in thirteen months. If she becomes our babysitter we can continue to work. At the moment I can’t afford to stop working, have to work a lot so my accountant agrees on my next plans.”  
“You get some extra rent from Jules and me for the room.”  
“What? Forget it!” She didn’t want any money from her friends. It was her idea to have them in the house, they needed a safe place and you didn’t ask money from a friend in need. 

“I know I’m not supposed to call you while you’re at work but I had to hear your voice and tell you, I miss and love you.” Sara said apologetic when Sofia answered her cell phone. This wasn’t how an adult reacted, this was childish. It wasn’t like they were apart for the first time, they worked every day alone and didn’t see each other until they were back home. Today was not different than any other day only that she missed Sofia and needed to tell her.   
“You’re cute, I love and miss you too.”  
“Are you very busy?”  
“No, we’re through most of the evidence and I can take a little break to talk to my girlfriend. Are you all right? Do my parents behave themselves?”  
“Of course. We took the dogs out to the beach and they enjoy the cold water while we watch them. It’s too cold for a picnic, but it’s okay to sit down for a few moments and relax. I wish you were here.”  
“So do I. The next time we visit them in Vegas, this way I can’t be called in.”  
“Hit the Strip?”  
“We’ll watch every show you want to see.”  
“Deal. What do you want for dinner? We’ll stop at the shop on our way back.”  
“Surprise me with something nice. Oh, tell my parents, I want Christmas cookies before they leave. At least two bags full for us.”  
“They’re not our house chefs and will leave tomorrow.”  
“No, they’re our parents and parents are supposed to make cookies for their kids. No excuses. When you had a cookie you’ll understand why I insist on them.”  
“I trust you on that. Are there any chance you come home earlier?”  
“I don’t know. Some evidence is still in the lab, gets analyzed. If they find out something that can lead us to the kidnapper I’ve to go there. Otherwise I might be allowed to go home earlier or at least on time.”  
“Would be nice. I really miss you. Usually we’re together at the beach, without you, it has lost a lot of its charm.”  
“Just make sure you won’t become a lobster again. I like this red skirt on you, red skin isn’t what I like. Too much pain for you.”  
“Your parents will make sure I don’t fall asleep here.”  
“Good. William waves at me, I’ve to go. Enjoy the beach.”  
“I try. Love you.”  
“Love you more and look forward to be in your arms ASAP.”  
“So do I. Bye sweetheart.”  
“See you soon, Honey.” Sofia blew a kiss into the cell phone. Her girlfriend called her to tell her she loved and missed her. Wasn’t this the cutest thing ever? 

A crime scene that might had something to do with their baby cases. The police was called to a house in Beverly Hills after a Rottweiler bid a man. Usually not a case for Sofia, but in this case was a baby involved.   
She found the mother of the baby and the baby in the garden, walking around in circles, talking to somebody on the phone. A sigh of relief escaped the blonde when she realized this wasn’t a kidnapping case, or not a successful kidnapping case. The baby seemed to be all right, only the mother looked slightly anxious. The shock?   
“Mrs. Bell?”  
“Here is more police, try to reach the mayor, will you? Thanks. See you later.” She turned. Sofia guessed her in her late twenties, tall, almost six foot, thin, blond, dressed in expensive clothes from an Italian designer. This woman had money and when she asked for the mayor she was likely to get him. The house, or the villa, was three stories high and Sofia guessed, there were more than twenty rooms. If Mrs. Bell, her husband and the baby lived here alone, each of them could have their own story.  
“Where’s Sebastian?”  
Who was Sebastian? Another baby? Didn’t they tell Sofia no baby was kidnapped?   
“I beg your pardon?”  
“Sebastian, our dog.”  
“I don’t know.” She wasn’t here to look for a dog, was she? Did the family uses their money to get a CSI here and look for their dog?   
“Your people took him away.”  
“Did he bite the man?”  
“The trespasser. He had no right to be here and if anything happens to Sebastian your officers will be in trouble. They treated him like he did something wrong.”  
“As far as I know the man had to be taken to hospital.”  
“So what? He had no right to be here.”  
“Can you tell me what happened?” And what she was supposed to do here.   
“I left Eduardo for a minute outside in his buggy. We came home from our morning walk, I thought he might enjoy the sunshine and fresh air and left him here. When I was in the kitchen I heard a scream. Not from my baby, a man. I went back to the living room and saw Sebastian holding on to a man’s leg. This is a private property, there are various signs that we don’t want anybody trespassing or entering the premises without permission. I have no idea who this man is, he wasn’t invited and he had no right to be here. Sebastian only did what he’s supposed to do: he took care of our baby and the house.”  
“And your dog didn’t let go of the man?”  
“No. He’s big, even for a Rottweiler, and when he holds on to something, it’s impossible to get it out of his mouth. My husband and my brother-in-law once tried to beat Sebastian in tug-of-war and had no chance.”  
“So when you came back outside there was a man in your garden, who tried to run away and was kept here by your dog?”  
“Yes. I want my dog back! Don’t you dare to do anything to him.”  
“Isn’t it dangerous to leave your baby…who old he?”  
“A little over two weeks and no, it’s not dangerous.”  
“A baby and a Rottweiler alone in the garden?” Sofia wouldn’t leave a baby alone with a Rottweiler, not even with her own dogs. They didn’t have to have bad intentions, only want to play with the baby and could hurt it seriously. A baby and a dog wasn’t a good combination when left alone.   
“Sebastian loves Eduardo. Whenever they’re together in a room, we’re somewhere else and Eduardo starts crying, he comes and gets us back to the baby. He’s really protective and loves our baby.”  
“Okay. What did the man say? Why was he here?”  
“He yelled at me I should get the dog off him. For a second I was tempted to do so, there was blood and I know, Sebastian has sharp and good teeth. But then I thought, he has no right to be here and should be punished for trespassing. The law is too soft and maybe he thinks about trespassing the next time when he looks at his leg. There should be a few scars now.”  
“He never explained why he was here?”  
“Said something about he had lost his way. Nonsense. This is a secured area, if you lose your way, you ring a doorbell and ask for the way and don’t climb a two yards fence. I bet he wanted to break in, thought nobody is at home and he can get himself some nice early Christmas presents.”  
Sofia agreed on the fact that the man wasn’t an ordinary trespasser nor a person, who lost his way. She was sure he intended to steal something, but not jewelry or money, like Mrs. Bell thought.   
“Where was the man when you found him?”  
“Over there, you can see some blood.” Not impressed Mrs. Bell pointed towards the short trimmed lawn. There was blood and less than a yard away was the buggy.   
“Was the buggy the whole time where it’s now?”  
“Yes. Why?”  
“Mrs. Bell, how does the man look like?”  
“A little over six feet tall, normal build, short dark hair. I didn’t see his eyes, he wore shades, black clothes.”  
A man with dark hair, a baby left alone in the garden, a good neighborhood. It added all to her case.   
“Excuse me for a second, please.” She stepped away, took her cell phone and called Jess.   
“Yo LT, what’s up?”  
“Where’s the trespasser? From the Bell house?”  
“In hospital. Why?”  
“You better make sure he doesn’t escape, the way I see this, he was about to kidnap the baby and not only a trespasser or a burglar.”  
“Seriously?”  
“He fits the description, we had a baby alone in the garden and if the dog hadn’t stopped him, he had taken the boy. A yard was between him and the baby.”  
“Fuck! I call the officer, who is with him and get over there ASAP.”  
“You better do. Where’s the dog?”  
“Animal control got it, it refused to let go of the man until Mrs. Bell told him so. How can you let your baby alone with such a dog?”  
“At the moment it looks like the dog saved the baby and caught our kidnapper. I call animal control and make sure, they Bells get their dog back.”  
“You better hurry, the dog wasn’t cooperative and they had to seduce it to get it into the van. It tried to get to the man all the time.”  
“Think of him as a four legged bodyguard. A good bodyguard doesn’t let anybody with a bad intention come close to their client, for the dog, the baby is the client.”  
“Sounds too crazy for me, but you’re the dog owner, if it makes sense to you and the guys from animal control it’s fine with me. Gotta go and see the man. Later LT.”  
“Later detective.” Sofia dialed the number of animal control and made sure, Sebastian was alive and well. With the knowledge the Rottweiler was seduced but not harmed, she went back to Mrs. Bell.   
“Your dog is fine, they seduced it but it’s not at risk.”  
“I want him back! Now!”  
“You have to talk to animal control. When you said you came back from your morning walk, do you go for the same walk every morning? At the same time?”  
“Roughly, yes. I like to get fresh fruits for my milk shake, Sebastian likes fresh meat from the butcher down the road.”  
“Did you take the dog with you?”  
“No, Sebastian was out with my husband early in the morning, they go for a run every morning at six, come back at seven and then he’s fine until lunch. After lunch I take him out to the mountains where he can run free while I walk with Eduardo and meet with a few friends, who also have dogs.”  
“Your garage is quite big.”  
“Yes, what does the garage have to do with my dog and the walk?”  
“Do you let Sebastian into the car in the garage?”  
“Yes. We don’t have our cars outside. He gets into the car, lies down and waits until we’re in the mountains. Why?”  
“I also noticed you don’t have a sign put up somewhere telling people about your dog.”  
“No. It’s nobody’s business if we have a dog or not and too many people like to throw poisoned meat to dogs. Our neighbors down the road lost a dog this way. Sebastian doesn’t bark, you don’t notice him from the outside.”  
That was exactly what Sofia thought. No warning of the dog, it was only seen early in the morning, later the dog was in car, nobody saw it and because it didn’t bark, it was like it wasn’t here. To the kidnapper this building had only one challenge for him, the security fence. After he passed this one, he expected to get to the baby and leave with it without any problems. The watch dog wasn’t on his list. He didn’t make his homework good enough and now they had him. Thanks to the dog. 

“Can you repeat that?” Sofia didn’t believe her ears. Something had to be wrong with the reception of her cell phone.   
“He’s gone.”   
No, nothing was wrong with her cell phone, she stood in the middle of the garden of the Bells, there was no cloud on the sky and no contact noise.   
“You lost him? How?”  
“He was taken into a room to get treatment for his leg and when he was alone with the doctor, he overwhelmed him, climbed out of the window and was gone.” Jess explained compunctious. “Sorry LT.”  
“I’m not your LT anymore. Did you tell your LT already?”  
“Yes, he wasn’t impressed. But I wanted you to know before I get back and get my share of trouble.”  
“Thanks.”  
“Are we sure he is our man?”  
“As sure as we can be. At least we’ve his DNA now and some really good photos. Get the surveillance tapes of the hospital maybe we get some information off them." This time he couldn’t escape the cameras, he was taken into hospital, had to join the officer.   
“We have a photo of him and he’s on the radio and his photo is sent to all police officers in L.A. and around. I’m sure the higher power discusses about the TV at the moment.”  
“And how they can make us work more so they don’t look too stupid when the reporters talk to them.”  
“Probably.”  
“I go back to work, maybe he left something behind in the garden. After all, this didn’t work out the way he planed. I want to know how he got in, where his accomplices waited, if somebody saw him.”  
“You get another detective over, I stay here and try to get anything helpful from here. I send you his photo and Greg arrived a minute ago and works in the doctor’s office.”  
“Okay, give me a call when you have something new.”  
“Will do. Later LT.”  
Sofia saved them both to repeat, she wasn’t the LT anymore. For her former detective, she was still the lieutenant, still one of the people, she informed first. It hurt a little bit to know, she’d never be the LT again, but at the same time it made her very proud. They still called her by her old rank, they hadn’t forgotten her, still respected her a lot. A respect she worked for, earned. So the happiness was bigger than the sadness.   
“Now, I thought this is a workplace.”   
“Don!” What was her housemate doing here?   
“CSI Curtis, don’t you have a job to do? Where were you with your thoughts?”  
“I got a call from a detective, who updated me on the case and I thought about the case – and how much respect this detective has for her former LT. Not like somebody else. How comes you’re here? It’s not a homicide case.”  
“No but I worked this case before and had some spare time on my hands. I heard over the radio the man is our man?”  
“Looks like. You can bang on some doors, ask the neighbors what they saw, if there was a car or van around. If he was in here, his accomplice wasn’t far away, waited somewhere for him.”  
“Who stopped him?”  
“The dog.”  
“And?”  
“No and. A Rottweiler stops you until the police arrives.”  
“Impressive. And now he’s gone.”  
“Heard it on the radio, bugger. We’ll get him anyway.”  
“Hopefully.”  
“Who was here? Which detective?”  
“Jess.”  
“Anything she hadn’t done yet?”  
“Don’t know. When I told her who the supposedly burglar might be, she called her officers and left to make sure we don’t lose the man. Unfortunately she was too late.”  
“He planed that the minute he was taken to hospital. Not her fault, not the doctor’s fault, I bet he had a backup plan. I canvass the neighbors, look for some security cameras, that might help us.”  
“Okay. I go on here. Call me if you need a CSI.”  
“Or the opinion of a LT.”  
“I can give you that too.” She turned and looked at the buggy, that was bagged. Various blood examples were on the way to the lab. On her knees she examined the area with the blood. There was something black. Carefully she picked it up with her tweezers. Could be a piece of jeans. Did the man wear black jeans? They could get the brand, would it help? Probably not. But piece by piece you completed a jigsaw puzzle.   
Their suspect was gone. There was a part of Sofia, that wanted her to leave this scene, go after the man. Be a cop, chase him, do something more active. He wouldn’t come back, she had no chance to get him, had to stay behind, get evidence.   
“You can’t always get what you want, make the best out what you’ve got.” She told herself quietly. Time to use her skills and her intuition. The man came into the garden, wanted to get the baby and vanish without making any noise. So the baby had to be quiet. The last times he used a chloroform tissue. Did he carry it in his pocket, pulled it out when he was next to the buggy? Did he have it in his hand? If so, it had to be some-where. The Dog attacked him before he reached the buggy, maybe he threw it away. Or got very brave and tried to use it on the dog? Was it brave or stupid if he tried this? She wasn’t sure. Pressing a tissue on the nose of an aggressive dog sounded more stupid to her. Very stupid.   
While scanning the garden she took her cell phone. “Hey Greggo, are you in the doctor’s office?”  
“Yes.”  
“Have a look for the chloroform tissue. In all cases he used it, I bet he had it with him today too. I’ll check the garden…”  
“Save it, I got it. He used it to overwhelm the doctor. It’s bagged.”  
“Okay. Any news of him?”  
“Nothing. The police chases him, the doctor’s office is in the second story, he jumped out and took off. Officers are talking to witnesses, maybe we get information where he ran to, if there was a car that picked him up.”  
“Do you need me to join you?”  
“No, finish the garden, I’ve got Brandon with me.”  
“I’ve got Don here, when I’m done with the garden, I’ve a look at security camera’s in the street. Here are a lot of villas, there must be a few cameras. See you in the lab.”  
“We’re getting closer to him, Sofia!”  
“I know.” They didn’t have him anymore but they got more than in the morning. 

“Take a break, have some late lunch.”  
“Sara!” Sofia almost dropped her evidence bag. Her girlfriend was here. In the lab. With a box in her hands.   
“At least you can remember my name.” Sara smiled. She had heard about the incident in Beverly Hills, knew her lover had to work longer and probably forgot to have something to eat. Just like she did when she was a CSI.   
“Sorry, I said I try to come home earlier but…”  
“I know. Put the evidence bag down.”  
“Why?”  
“Because I’m not allowed to touch it and I can’t hug you when you have it in your hands. Put it down, step out the room and have a little break with me. You’re allowed to sit and eat for ten minutes.” Sara left the room and waited outside for Sofia, who needed a second to understand her work was done for now. Her lover was here, wanted her to take a break and didn’t take a no for an answer. Exactly the same thing she’d do.   
After she locked the evidence room she took Sara’s hand, pulled she in her arms. “Thanks for coming over.”  
“Well, I want to eat with my girlfriend, she can’t come home for lunch so I go to the lab and see her.”  
“Are my parents mad because I’m not home yet?”  
“Your father is married to a police captain, your mother knows the rules of law enforcement, of course they’re not mad. They’re in the kitchen, baking cookies. With the help of Jules and Tanya while the twins watch them making a mess.”  
“They’re too young to appreciate cookies.” Sofia opened the break room, turned on the coffee machine and pulled Sara on her lap. “This is the first time you came and visit me at work.”  
“Most times I work myself and you’re too busy to have me distracting you from your work.”  
“You can distract me whenever you want.”  
“Where’s Greg?”  
“In hospital. He works the doctor’s office, the man was in before he escaped. He used the chloroform tissue.” Sofia had sent her lover a message earlier that they had the man but he escaped.   
“No traces of him?”  
“No.”  
“They put his photo on TV and AMBER. Information about him should come in soon.”  
“I’m afraid he’s not in L.A. anymore. He knows we’re looking for him, we have his face, know how he looks and with all the photos around the city, he’ll be somewhere with a cap, shades and a wig in a car, getting the hell out of Los Angeles. High-way patrol can’t stop every car.”  
“No, that’s impossible. The FBI and CIA have the photo?”  
“They’ve everything we’ve got.”  
“Sooner or later he’ll end up in custody. Again.”  
“When he’s back in custody there should be an angry Rottweiler with him. The dog managed to catch him, didn’t let him escape.”  
“Really?”  
“Yes. He protected the baby, bit the man and didn’t let go until the police was there. All babies should have a watch dog, will our one have one?”  
“Our baby will have your mother watching over it, no dog can bite as good as your mother.”  
“I’ll tell her you said this!” Sofia laughed. Yes, her mother would act like the dog, when their baby was with her, there was no need to worry. Captain Curtis would rather shoot a stranger close to her grandchild than let him or her touch the baby.   
“Tattletale.” Sara kissed her lover. “You’re not blaming yourself for his escape, do you?”  
“I don’t know…if I had told Jess earlier it might be him and not an ordinary burglar or trespasser, she could have informed her colleagues faster, the officer had been around when he got his treatment and we had him in custody, the horror would be over.”  
“You made this conclusion fast, the first officer at the scene should have thought as fast as you did. A man, a baby, every cop should count one and one together and it adds up to only one thing at the moment.”  
Sofia sighed. It was easier to look for her own mistakes, she hated to point her finger at somebody else. Her lover was right, she did everything right, was fast and it wasn’t her fault they had nothing but…still. Maybe it was the lieutenant inside her, who tried to protect the officer. Her men. Who weren’t her men anymore.   
“I want it over and not him disappear and somebody else taking over for him.”  
“It’s more likely they leave L.A. and go to another city, maybe leave the country for a while, continue their work somewhere else, from where we won’t get the news and come back in a year or so when nobody thinks about the cases anymore except the parents of the babies.”  
“We need to send them to prison, enough parents have suffered.”  
“I know.”   
“What annoys me most is, no matter what I do, how good I analyze the evidence, it won’t help. There’s nothing that can tell us where he is or was. If we don’t get a video of him jumping in a car with a license plate, registered to a real L.A. address, we have nothing. They’re checking videos of the hospital, so far there’s no car, barely anything of him. Traffic cameras get checked, but there’s so much to watch, it’s impossible to cover it all today. With every minute we lose, he gets further and further away. They could be in Mexico already and if they are, we lost them.”  
“Positive thinking, Honey.” Sara hugged her lover. There weren’t many things that gave her a reason to believe in their success but when she gave up, they’d never get him and the bad guy won.   
“Here you are.” William said when he came into the room and saw Sofia. “Hello Sara.”  
“Hi William.”  
“Sorry, I was just having some lunch…”  
“How far are you with your evidence?”  
“I sent blood and tissue to trace, also soil examples, the buggy is next.”  
“Leave it for the others, he never touched the buggy thanks to the dog.”  
“So I continue with…”  
“You continue with going to your therapy. You’ve physio-therapy and psychotherapy today and I don’t want you to miss it. You skipped it the last time.”  
“We got a new case today…”  
“And you did all you have to do, leave it to Swing to work with what’s left. I want my investigator fit so they see evidence, for that your body and mind must be taken care of. Go, Greta is back, she can work for you.”  
“But…” There was so much left to do, she couldn’t just leave it to her colleague. It was her case, her responsibility. Leaving it, going home felt wrong. They didn’t have the time to shift the case around.   
“No but. We’re working this case since fourteen days and you had problems with your prosthesis, didn’t take a day off and worked overtime every day. Go and let somebody look after you and stay home tomorrow.”  
“What? I can’t…”  
“When I tell you to stay home you can. Fourteen days in a row, it’s time for you to have a day off. If it’s possible even two.”  
“But…”  
“No. You stay home tomorrow and when I don’t call you, you stay home the day after tomorrow. After that I need you back for a couple of days, Christmas time is busy, you know it as good as I do and I want you rested for it. Sara, take her to her doctors and don’t let her come to work tomorrow.”  
“Okay.” On one hand she understood her lover. When Grissom pulled her off cases because she had overworked herself, she hated it, didn’t want to listen, although she knew, he was right. Fourteen days in a row was a long time and Sofia had her doctor appointments today. Important ones. Not only for her leg, also for her mind. She told Sara about her problem with noise and that she didn’t feel like she could tell her therapist everything. To Sara this sounded all too familiar and she wanted her lover take care of herself and not only worry about other people. 

“What are you doing here?” Sofia looked surprised at Jules, who sat in the waiting room of her psychotherapist.   
“I’m your pick-up service. Sara asked me to pick you up and I took the chance to get out, have a stroll in the mall and come here. Hello doctor Tree.” She greeted Sofia’s therapist, who stepped out of the room behind the blonde.   
“Doctor Weinberg, congratulation to your babies.”  
“Thanks.”  
“When will you return to work?”  
“At the beginning of February.”  
“So you’re not here to steal my client?”  
“No, I’m her taxi driver.”  
“Interesting second occupation. Reminds me of university time. Miss Curtis, I hope I see you next week at the same time.”  
“Can’t promise you that, depends on the case.”  
“As usual. Doctor Weinberg, enjoy the time with your children and greeting to your cousin.”  
“Thanks. See you around, doctor Tree.” Jules linked her arm with Sofia and left the waiting room.   
“How comes you were shopping and don’t have bags with you? Your story doesn’t match up with what I see.”  
“I said, a stroll not a shopping tour.”  
“You’re here because you think I told Tree I won’t come back and you want to change my mind. He was scared I become your patient.”  
“He knows you can’t be my patient and if you don’t want to go to him anymore I won’t talk you into changing your mind. It’s important you feel comfortable.”  
“Wanna know if I told him I don’t come back?”  
“Do you want to tell me?”  
“I told him about my concern he might send information about my mental health and what we talk about to the department, which endangers my career there. After he listened to all I had to say, he printed out the letters he sent to the department, let me read it and I know now, he didn’t tell them anything what I told him. He wasn’t mad I doubted him, that I wanted proof, said, when I tell him right away what bothers me, he can react and we can work the problem out.   
After that I told him about my ‘noise’ problem, he says it’s a part of my PTSD and it will go away. The same you told me. He said a lot of things you told me, which makes me believe them easier.”  
“He’s a good doctor.”  
“So I was paranoid?”  
“No, you worried and needed some proof, you’re a CSI, a former lieutenant, it comes natural for you. No need to worry, you’re fine, Sofia.”  
“If I were fine I didn’t have to see a shrink.”  
“Or live with a therapist.” Jules opened her car.   
“She’s sexy, I like having her around.”  
“Really?”  
“Yeah, a hot brunette, can’t have enough of them in my house.” Sofia sat down on the passenger's seat, took Jules’s hand and hold it. “Nervous? Uncomfortable?”  
“Because you hold my hand? Not a bit, Love.” Jules bent over and kissed the blonde’s cheek. “You can’t scare me with holding my hand, Sofia, I’m not homophobic, not even a little bit.”  
“Did you ever have a girlfriend?” Why not turn the table and ask Jules a few questions instead of having her asking questions all the time. Lets make it personal for her therapist friend.   
“No.”  
“Why not?”  
“I was never attracted to a woman.”  
“No curiosity? How it is to have sex with a woman?”  
“Not enough to have sex with one.”  
“Did you ever kiss a woman?”  
“I just kissed you.” Jules smiled amused.  
“Not on the cheeks, a real kiss. French kissing, having your tongue playing with hers.”  
“No.”  
“You missed something out.”  
“I’m quite happy with my fiancé.”  
“And I hope you never want somebody else than him because Greg is a very special man.”  
“He is. Don’t worry, my plan is to marry Greg and spend the rest of my life with him. He’s the father of my children.”  
“Which is obvious when you look at your daughter. So much like Greg.”  
“She is.”   
“Like your son looks like you.”  
“So who’s your favorite?”  
“Both. I love your babies and hope to have them and you around for a long, long time.”  
“Your neighbors move out soon, it’s getting more and more likely we’ll buy their house. It’s a nice neighborhood.”  
“Sure, I’ll be your neighbor, you can have a better one.”  
“Sara?”  
“She’s my better half, we’re one.”  
“Two wonderful women, not one.”  
“A sexy brunette, who isn’t my girlfriend, flirts with me. As a good girlfriend I’ve to ignore that and tell Sara about it later. Temptations, temptations. Be strong Sofia, ignore it, think of Sara.”  
“Cute.” Jules stopped the car in front of the house. “Go and see your girlfriend.”  
“And the babies.” Now she had some time on her hands. The last day with her parents, a free day with her girlfriend and walks with her dogs and the babies.   
As soon as she opened the door her dogs greeted her like she had been away for a year. “My babies, how are you.” Wet tongues got through her face, sloppy dog kisses covered her. No matter how bad she was in being around, taking her dogs out for a walk because of her job, they loved her and went crazy when she came home.   
“True love.” Tanya laughed when she saw the scene. “Only possible between dogs and women.”  
“No, also between men and women.” Don took a cloth, washed Sofia’s face and kissed her. “I love her since the day we met, we never fight and share the good and bad times. And soon a bigger house.”  
“My accountant isn’t happy.”  
“Not?”  
“No, he said, I don’t have the capital for a new room, I’m in the debt of the bank and until that hasn’t changed, there won’t be more money.”  
“How much?”  
“Three zeros.”  
“We’ll talk to your accountant.”  
“We?” She looked surprised.   
“Yes. Maybe when you have a detective by your side he’ll be nicer.”  
“Do you plan to take your gun with you?”  
“No, I’ve something else in my mind. What do you think? Shall we go there together?”  
“Okay, why not.”  
“Tanya, mom told me, she has the number of a nice, young and successful doctor, you might want to meet for dinner. He has the night off and you can see her in an hour, she’ll introduce you to him.”  
“Of course a doctor, the doctor family.” Sofia rolled her eyes. “One day poor Greggo has to become a doctor or he won’t be a full member of this family. Crazy. Why don’t you try to date other people? Look at Jules, she doesn’t look too sad without a doctor by her side. She even preferred an ordinary CSI guy over a successful doctor. Did your parents cut you out of their will for Greg?”  
“Don’t be silly, Sofia.”  
“Just asking. A doctor. Pah.”  
“Tell your mother it’s sweet she wants to get me a man, but I can do that myself. Plus I’ve a date already.”  
“With whom?”   
“This nice man over there, we’ll have a lot of beer, a huge pizza, potato chips and play Playstation and Wii the whole night. Much better than dating a doctor, who might gonna tell me about how great he is, how many lives he has saved and how big his house is. I’m a doctor myself, I don’t need a doctor man.”  
“Again a doctor who won’t get into the family because a law enforcement person is more interesting.”  
“I’m more after fun, beer and pizza than dinner in an expensive restaurant. Are you ready to lose, detective?”  
“You can scare me when you wear white and I’ve to sit on your horrible chair. With the video games you can’t scare me. You’ll go under and end up crying in your cousin’s arms.”  
“Is that a challenge?”  
“Yes.”  
“I take it. When you lose, you’ll be my first patient.”  
“I’ve a dentist.”  
“Then you’ll have a new one. Or are you scared? A chicken detective? Need a dentist who is specialist in anxiety patients?”  
“No!”  
“Good but I am such a dentist, so you don’t have to worry.”  
“If he doesn’t want to be your patient, I do. My dentist isn’t nice.” Sofia said.   
“I write you down. Don?”  
“Yeah, why not? But I warn you, if you hurt me, I’ll throw you into jail.”  
“Pansy. Come on, time to play.” Tanya pulled Don with her.   
“Do you think…?” Sofia started when she and Jules were alone.   
“I don’t want to think about it.”  
“Why?”  
“Because I know my cousin and I know she isn’t a saint. It’s none of my business, they’re both old enough.”  
“Even when their video game evening ends in sex, they’re both single, both adults as you mentioned and know what they do. Should know.”  
“Lets hope it will be nothing else than video games. Tanya is in the middle of her divorce, she should be sick and tired of men …then again, because she isn’t, she gets divorced.”  
“Don isn’t the kind of guy who doesn’t care when his girlfriend fools around. He needs a woman he can trust, who doesn’t betray him. Can she be such a woman?”  
“Yes. She never betrayed a partner before; or she didn’t tell me what is not very likely because we’re very close and tell each other everything. Her husband, ex husband, is…I never under-stood why she married him, they’re not alike. Maybe that was the attraction first and when they woke up they were married …Vegas is a dangerous place.”  
Sofia laughed. “Will you go to Vegas with Greg? When he wants to see his old colleagues and friends?”  
“Yes.”  
“You might end up married.”  
“I do plan to marry him, not in Vegas, in Los Angeles. And we’re not together since half a year.”  
“No…wow, she was quick.”  
“Enthusiastic and spontaneous, that's Tanya.”  
“She might be good for Don, he needs happy people around him, who drag him into fun.”  
“That’s Tanya.”  
“We wait what happen and while they play whatever, we get upstairs and have a look what the twins are doing. And the whole house smells like cookies, I want to try a few. At least one of every kind.”   
“You’ll need to see Tanya in her office after Christmas.” Jules grinned. Now they had a dentist around, that could be handy at one point. An appointment with your dentist wasn’t something you looked forward, but when one of them was in agony, they knew who to call during the weekend. 

“You told a shrink to pick me up from a shrink!” Sofia poked Sara, who was upstairs with Sofia’s parents, baking cookies.   
“I asked a friend to pick you up.”  
“She’s a shrink.”  
“First of all she’s you friend. Thanks for picking Sofia up, Jules.”  
“You’re welcome, it was my pleasure. She flirted with me.”  
“Did she? Why am I not surprised?”  
“You know her. Are my little treasures asleep?”  
“We haven’t heard from them for a few minutes.” Marie said. “It shouldn’t take too long before they’re hungry again.”  
“Probably. Thanks for looking after them.”  
“Our pleasure. Hold this.” Marie handed Sofia a tray with cookies ready to go into the oven while she checked on the cookies in the oven. “Almost done.” She took Sofia’s tray in the oven. “How was your therapy?”  
“Okay. I got a lot of answers and I feel better staying with my doc now.”  
“Good to hear. And your leg?”  
“As good as new. My physiotherapist says we won’t see each other forever. Maybe I can get rid off him soon, one therapist is enough in my life. Jules is the one I want around, not the rest.”  
“Jules will stay around, especially when she moves only a few doors down. And when you hit on her again, you’ll be in trouble, understood?” Now it was Sara who poked Sofia.   
“I didn’t flirt, I only asked a few interesting questions about her dating women.”  
“Why is that important to know?”  
“Curiosity. Do you want to know what she said?”  
“No. It doesn’t matter who she dated, I love her anyway.”  
“Who hits on her?”  
“You did. Marie, where do you want me to put these cookies?”  
“Find a box for them.”  
“There aren’t any left up here.” Mark said. He was busy making more dough.   
“I’ve a look downstairs. Otherwise we need bags. Why don’t you stop making more and more dough?”  
“Because you’ll get more cookies.”  
“We have a dozen boxes already full.”  
“Lets double it, Sofia will eat it, believe me.”  
“And lose all her teeth.”  
“For that I’ve a new dentist. Tanya wrote me on her list as her first patient after she offered Don to be her first one but he was a chicken. Want her too?”  
“Maybe. Don is home? I haven’t seen him.”  
“He and Tanya are busy fighting, video game fights. Jules’s mother had a date for her, a doctor of course, but she prefers to play with him than have dinner with a boring doctor. Law enforcement one, medicine zero.”  
“I can understand that. Why don’t I look for more boxes and after that we take the dogs out to the playground? On our way back we get some cold beer and have dinner with your parents. It’s their last evening.”  
“I’m aware of that.” Sofia sighed. Time flew by, she barely spent any quality time with her parents. “What time do you have to leave tomorrow, dad?”  
“After lunch maybe. Why?”  
“I’ve the day off, so it would be nice to have breakfast and lunch with you.”  
“Then we’ll have breakfast and lunch. Your mother and me don’t have to work until the day after tomorrow, we can come home a little bit later, if we feel like it, we can drive home after an early dinner, when rush hour is over. Do you have only tomorrow off?”  
“Yes. At least it’s the only day I’m sure of. William said, when there are no new cases and no new evidence, I can stay at home the day after tomorrow too.”  
“We’ll talk about your case after dinner. Go and spend some time with Sara and the dogs, get us enough beer to celebrate the last night and be back not later than an hour and a half. Dinner is organized, all we need is the beer and your company.” He kissed his daughter. “Be on time, you know the captain hates to wait.”  
“It’s a great way of making her mad, I know.” Sofia grinned. She had used this a few times when she was a teenager. Meals together had been very important for her mother because they were rare, and when Sofia wanted to annoy her, she was deliberately late. Most times her parents knew this, punished her for it, but it never stopped her from not doing it again. The usual fights of a teenager with her parents.   
“Try to act like an adult and not like a stubborn teenager, honey.” Her mother called and got a tray with cookies out of the oven. “And hurry with the boxes. If you don’t find enough, you have to buy a few more or find something else to store your cookies.”  
“My stomach is a great place to store cookies.” Sofia grinned.   
“It’s not a storage room for them, it’s their final destination.”   
“True. Will you still love me when I’m fat because of too many cookies?” She got her arm around Sara and pulled her closer.   
“Maybe.”  
“Maybe?”  
“Yeah, when I’ve the feeling you love eating cookies more than you love me, I will leave you and look for a gardener with a huge vegetable garden.”  
“I’ll never love anything more than you.” She kissed her lover. Self made cookies came close to Sara but weren’t better than the brunette. 

20th of December

No phone call, no pager went off, it seemed like Sofia was supposed to have a day off today. At least the first seven hours of the day looked this way. With her dogs she jogged around the reservoir before it was time for a shower with Sara, that took longer than expected, and some more kisses while they got dressed. When you hide skin under shirts you had to kiss it goodbye because you didn’t see it for a while.   
“I need to go Christmas shopping later.” Sofia opened the door to the balcony and enjoyed the view over Silver Lake for a second. It was a nice picture when the sun pushed gently the darkness away and gave them a new day. Little clouds in the sky promised some rain for later. Very good, her garden had to be watered anyway.   
“Why? Our cupboards are full.”   
“Not food, presents. A few presents are missing.”  
“Okay.”  
“Do you have all presents already?”  
“Yes. I love online stores, they deliver your presents to your door, you don’t have to look for a parking space, don’t have to push thousands of people out of your way, don’t get run over by families with four stroller, two bikes and a dog, no waiting at a check out for half an hour, nobody who pushes the caddy into my heels. I love online Christmas shopping! And most times I save money too and buy you an extra present.”  
“An extra present? I love that you do online shopping. Maybe that’s an option for me too. Another good thing about it is, I can sit in the garden with you while I shop. A kiss after every thing I found.”  
“When you buy a jigsaw puzzle, do I get a kiss for every piece?”  
“Nice idea, I’d buy the biggest one.” Sofia pulled Sara in her arms and kissed her. “It’s good to have some time with you in the morning, not to hurry and have the time to kiss you when I feel like it. A day off isn’t that bad.”  
“You need one. If anything happens, if there are news, you’ll know. Greg is there, your old colleagues will call you too, LT.”  
“LT. It’s so cute they call me LT. Makes me feel better.”  
“You worked hard for the title. Once a cop, always a cop. Come on, my person chief of police, time to have breakfast with the captain and the civilian.”   
“For the last time. They didn’t see me a lot during their holidays.”  
“Not because you didn’t want to see them. Don’t blame yourself for something that isn’t your fault. The next time we’ve two or three days off, we drive to Vegas and see them there.” Sara kissed her lover. She understood Sofia felt guilty because she left her parents alone even when she refused to see her mother and brother at all. Shouldn’t Christmas make her want to see them? The famous spirit of Christmas, that got families all over the world together. It didn’t work on her.   
“The worst part is, they understand, I can’t even argue with them.”  
Now the brunette had to laugh. “Honey you’re in an age where you don’t have to piss off your parents all the time.”  
“But I enjoy it – sometimes. It’s the child in me.”  
“The nightmare. When you’re not nice to your parents, our child won’t be nice to you. What goes around comes around. Your mom will tell our kid about you.”  
“My grandmother never told me about the things my mother did. It’s not fair.”  
“I’m sure your mother will tell our child, so be nice to her.”  
“Yeah, yeah. Lets get down and prepare breakfast, that’s nice. And when I give them this, it will give me some extra points.” Sofia held up a little parcel.   
“What’s that?”  
“A present. Not a Christmas present, a ‘thanks for being so great parents’ present. Their Christmas present is…where is it?”  
“Packed and wrapped in a box in the wardrobe. We can give it to them before they leave.”  
“You’re the greatest. Thanks for organizing everything.” Sofia pulled Sara in her arms and kissed her. While she was busy at work, barely spent any time at home with her parents, her lover took care of everything.   
“My pleasure. You’d do the same.”  
“Yes. Nevertheless I’m absolutely over the moon to have you and feel like ripping off your clothes and show you how grateful I am.”  
“Save it for tonight or we’ll be very late, impolite late, for breakfast.”  
“You’re so sensible.”  
“I try.” Sara smiled, took Sofia’s hand and pulled her out of the room. In the little hallway they ran into Jules.   
“Morning shrinky.” Sofia teased.   
“Morning loony.” Jules shot back dryly.   
“Boah, not nice!”   
“Ditto. Did you sleep well, Sara?”   
“Yes.” Sara hugged Jules and kissed her cheek. When her loony girlfriend and her former shrink had a catfight, she would stay out of it. “What about you?”  
“Two little breaks because of hungry twins. Greg slept on the couch to get a few hours.”  
“Are the twins awake?”  
“Yes.”  
“We can take them with us, it’s breakfast time. Did you have breakfast?”  
“With Greg.”  
“Want another coffee?”  
“I’d love but no, I’ve to get a tea.”  
“Yuck. Let me get my baby for you.” Sara went into the room to get Eric.   
“And I take his sister.” Sofia smiled.   
“If you would breastfed them I could have a coffee.” Jules cheered. A huge mug of coffee for breakfast, a latte for lunch, she missed her daily caffeine boosts. 

“Raindrops keep falling on my head.” With Jorja in her arm Sofia danced through the living room and watched the rain-drops running down on her windows. “Just over one week and you’re such a talented dancer. I tell you Honey, a few more years and we both will hit the clubs and dance our asses off, make them all look at us, adore us.”  
“Can I be around and catch your cute ass when you dance it off?” Sara asked coy and slapped Sofia on her rear end.   
“No, you’ve to stay at home and watch Eric and our baby.”  
“You want to have fun without me? Why don’t you go out with me?”  
“Why don’t you ask me if I go dancing with you?”  
“Leave her with the baby, I go out with you, Sara. We can dance, sing, share cocktails and get very close.” Shane grinned. He came around to say hello and have a look at the twins.   
“Stay out of this, Christmas boy.” Sofia answered for Sara. When her parents saw Shane’s hair, they had to look twice and Sofia’s mom couldn’t hold back a comment, that Shane took with a smile. For his always unusual hairstyles he got a lot of comments, laughs and name-calling.   
“You can be my angel, blondie. No seriously, a new club opened in WeHo, I heard only things about it, why don’t we go there? Don’t argue with you leg you can’t dance anymore, Sofia. It’s lame. You’ve got more groove when you dance with Jorja to the song in your head, than most woman have on the dance floor with a DJ playing the newest hits. And it shouldn’t matter what all the others think, the only opinion important for you is Sara’s and I’ very sure she wants to see your sexy ass dancing.”  
“I do.” Sara grinned. “The famous Curtis swagger, holding you in my arms when the DJ plays a ballad and taking you home as my private trophy.”  
“Your private trophy?” Sofia looked indignant at her lover. A trophy. She wasn’t a trophy, that sounded…very sexy and adorable. Trophies made people bend over backwards to get them, made them fight and give all they have. Okay, she was a trophy, Sara’s trophy.   
“Yes.”   
“We don’t have a day off to go out.”  
“No, but when you boss doesn’t call until tonight, you are likely to have a day off tomorrow and I’ve to work late. Same for Shane. We can go out tonight.”  
“In the middle of the week?”   
“Why not?”  
Yeah, why not? In the middle of the week were less people around, maybe the best way for Sofia to start going out again. This way she could have a look how people react to her leg and her new way of dancing.   
“Okay, lets go out tonight. Can we take Jules with us? She deserves a change.”  
“When she wants to join us, why not? Leave Greg with the babies alone.” Sara hugged her lover. Jules wasn’t the only one who needed a change. For the blonde a different evening would be good too. Get the case out of her head, forget about her leg, feel that she could live the same life like before the accident.   
“Tony and Sally are here. Oh, we should take you with us, baby Jorja. You’ll be the star of the evening.”  
“She’ll have an acute hearing loss when we take her to a club and will be very scared. Wait a few more years and she’ll love to join you – sooner than her parents want her to join us. Or her friends because we’ll be too old and boring to hang around with.”  
“I’ll never be old and boring!”   
“She’s smug again, happens more often the last time. A good sign, I like her being smug, that's how I met her in Las Vegas.” Sara grinned.   
“There’s a difference between being smug and being right.”  
“Yeah, you’re all the time smug but not all the time right.” 

The last hours with her parents flew by way too fast. It felt like a few minutes ago that Sofia got up and now it was already time for her parents to pack their things. It was three in the afternoon and when they wanted to be out of the city before rush hour started, they had to leave soon.   
“Promise me you won’t call your boss and ask if you can come back to work tomorrow.” Marie pulled Sofia in her arms.   
“Mom, they didn’t call they have the men, we’re still working a hot case.”  
“Yes and as long as there’s no new evidence, you can stay at home. Your boss said, he’ll call you if he needs you. Like he told you to relax because he needs you over the holidays. Take the second day off, sleep in and spend some time with your dogs, prepare dinner for Sara and get ready for Christmas.”  
“We’ll work over Christmas.”  
“Yes, but you’ve got children in the house. Even when they’ll be away the most time, they’re here and you want their first Christmas special. Plus you want to celebrate with them when you have your days off, you need presents for them.”  
“We have presents.” Sofia smiled. “Bought them weeks ago. Can’t you come back for Christmas?” Great, now she sounded like a little child, that could thought of nothing worse than spending Christmas without her parents.   
“No, sorry Honey.” The captain kissed her daughter. She wished they could come back but they had both to work. “Next year. And soon I’ll have the whole time off, will talk your father into working less and we can come over more often.”  
“Or move to L.A..”  
“Or we move to L.A., we’ll talk about it the next weeks. Be nice to Sara.”  
“Why don’t you tell her to be nice to me?”  
“I did that.”  
“Oh, okay.”   
“We love both of you and we’ll miss you both.”  
“The next time you come over, you’ll have your own room again.”  
“We had our own room and it was a very interesting stay.”   
“Almost like you were at work. Bodyguard of twin babies.”  
“Cute twin babies and when you have your baby, you need your second bedroom for my grandchild.”  
“Yeah…we’ll figure something out. A second spare bedroom wouldn’t be too bad. Or at least a sleep sofa in the gym.”  
“Don’t you have plans for your house? A new room for Don.”  
“Right. He and me have to see my accountant, he doesn’t like the idea and Don said, he can make him like the idea. I wonder if he has a legal method or a cop method.”  
“A cop method is always a legal method.”  
“Not true!” Mark disagreed when he came into the room with a suitcase. “Cops can be very unfair, like when they let somebody else carry all their luggage.”  
“You’re the civilian, it’s your job to do this kind of work. I’ve to do cop work.” Marie hugged her husband.   
“Cops. Where’s our cop son? Didn’t he want to say goodbye?”  
“He did and he hasn’t called he can’t make it so he should be here any time soon.”  
“Who?” Sara came with a bag in the room. The last piece of luggage of Sofia’s parents.   
“Don, to wave my parents goodbye.”  
“He arrived a few seconds ago.”   
“Perfect, then we can get the things to the car and wave our family goodbye. To Jules, Tanya and the twins we said already goodbye.” Marie took her bag from Sara. “As my daughter-in-law you can celebrate when I’m gone.”  
“I’d celebrate when you stay, mom.” Sara said. There were a lot of women who were more than happy when their mother-in-law left, she wasn’t one of them. To her, Marie was more her mother than her own mother was and she was happy when the captain was around. How could she ever have been afraid of her?  
“That’s my baby!” Marie kissed her. “You take good care of yourself and your girlfriend. Remember her what’s good for her, the job isn’t the highest priority, it’s always the one you love and your health.”  
“I’ll remind her of this when she forgets it.”  
“Good. There’s our cop son.”   
“Hey West Coast parents, don’t leave without me saying goodbye.”  
“We were wondering if you can make it.”  
“I could, the work day is over.”   
“We hope we haven’t messed up your room too much.”  
“Yesterday it looked good to me. You didn’t change your mind and want to stay a little bit longer?”  
“No.” Mark laughed. “We have no choice. The captain has to be back in the department tomorrow and I’ve to be back at university. It’s cute you all try to make us stay longer.”  
“We’re happy to have you here, come back soon.” Don opened the door for them.   
“It’s your turn to visit us in Vegas, Donald. You haven’t been there in ages.”  
“True…I promise I come over the next time I’ve three or four days off.”  
“We won’t let you off the hook now, you better show up and take our daughters with you if they’ve time.”  
“I promise.” A little trip to Las Vegas had been on his list for quite a while. Watching a few shows, hitting the clubs and enjoy the different nightlife in Sin City. If Sara and Sofia joined him, they could do all these things together. Meant more fun for all of them. 

“I miss them already. Horrible. Twenty years ago I couldn’t wait until they were gone finally and I had the place for myself, could do whatever I wanted to do without having my mother telling me off. Now I sit here and miss them, want them to turn and drive back to me. I’m the best example of a evolution going wrong.”  
“No, your best example of a loving daughter, who is mature enough to admit she misses her parents.” Sara kissed her lover.   
“It’s wrong to ask them all the time if they want to move to Vegas, they’ve to make the decision alone and without pressure …a long and hard time for me.”  
“You inherit that from your mother.” The brunette chuckled. Both women weren’t very patient.   
“Not funny!”   
“Oh. Kiss?”  
“You think you get yourself out of trouble with a kiss?”  
“I know.” Sara pulled Sofia in her arms and kissed her. “I love you.”  
“You two are a running love tearjerker scene. Horrible. How can you be so in love?” Tanya asked perplexed.  
“She’s great.” They answered unison.   
Tanya shook her head. “Horrible. Disgusting.”  
“What’s disgusting?” Jules came into the room.   
“Their love, they’ve to kiss all the time and are so happy it hurts the eyes and makes me sick to the stomach.”  
“You’re only jealous.”  
“No, look at them. Nothing can get between them, not even a needle.”  
“Of course.” Jules went to Sara and Sofia, pushed both a bit apart and sat in the middle. “See, I can sit in the middle.”  
“Now they’ll exchange their sloppy kisses over you.”  
“No, we’ll kiss Jules.” Sara grinned and kissed Jules’s right cheek while Sofia kissed the left.   
“A sexy brunette more on the couch with me. I like that.”  
“Don’t get too excited, your girlfriend is here too.”   
“Maybe we share you.” Sara said.   
“One side for each of us.”  
"We can take her upstairs with us."   
“Run, Jules, run!” Tanya said shocked.   
“No, I like it here. Between my two Vegas ladies.” Jules got her arms around Sofia and Sara. “Do you miss the captain and your father?”  
“Yeah, like a baby.”  
“Like a good daughter.”  
“Exactly what Sara said.”  
“She’s a smart woman, listen to her.”  
“This smart woman has plans with you tonight. Tell her, Sara.”  
"She wants me and you and your bed? I feel honored but it won't happen, sorry Sara."  
“No, I didn't think of a threesome." Sara laughed. "We will go out with Shane, he knows a new club in WeHo and wants us to join him there. We thought you might want to join us too. It has been a while that you went out and I’m sure you can leave the twins for a few hours with Greg.”  
“Sounds good beside the fact I don’t want to leave Greg behind.”  
“You don’t leave him behind, you’ll be away for a few hours and we take good care of you.”  
“No, I won’t go without him – except when he says he doesn’t want to go out. He deserves a night out too. My parents can look after the twins, mom is home, she’ll be happy to have them for a few hours or come here to look after them.”  
“Even better. With Greggo it will be more fun. Will you join us too, Tanya?” Sofia asked.   
“Sure, why not? I mean, I’ve to see what L.A. offers on single men.”  
“Quite good ones.”  
“The club is in WeHo? They’ll all be gay, what a pity. Oh well, I can look anyway.”  
“That’s the spirit. Hey Don, how do you feel about going out tonight? To a new club for a few hours?”  
“Only when you join us and I get to dance with you, blondie. We haven’t danced together in ages.”  
“Me? Do I have to?”  
“If you want me to miss out some of my sleep and go out with you until midnight, you will dance with me.”  
“Blackmailing.”  
“No, it’s called making a deal.”  
“Okay, we dance.” Sofia sighed. She wasn’t sure if she was ready for the dance floor. Wasn’t it enough when she stand by her friends and watch the people, who were dancing? To get a feeling for clubs again, for music and find the courage to dance herself.   
“Perfect. When will we leave?”  
“Shane will be here at ten.”  
“Enough time to see your accountant, Sofia.”  
“Uhm…today?”   
“Or prepare yourself for tonight.” Tanya smiled.   
“I don’t need preparation, I look great all the time. What do you think, Sofia? Shall we go and see him? Without an appointment, use the surprise for us?”  
“Okay. Honey, do you want to come too?”  
“No, it’s your appointment and his secret plan. I stay here, safe, and call Kyle and Lynn in case you both end up in custody.” Sara grinned.   
“Coward. Tanya, do you want a lift into town?”  
“Yeah, if I’m allowed to sit in a car with you, breathtaking beauty.”  
“Sure.” He grinned. “Hurry up, I leave in two minutes, time to fight.”  
“I’m ready to go. Just like you, I don’t need to prepare myself.”  
“Sofia, get your papers. Jules? Do you need something for the twins?”  
“No, they’ve all the need. Thanks.”  
“We bring some dinner home for all of you.”  
“Wow, thanks.” That were good news. Sara hated the idea of cooking and was too lazy to get something herself. The delivery service had been the solution or one of the pre-cooked meals, Sofia’s father left for them in the freezer. 

When Sofia and Don stood in front of the door to her accountant’s office she stopped.   
“What is your plan?”  
“Go in, take him down, get what we want and out. The whole operation shouldn’t take longer than two minutes, no evidence and bodies left behind.”  
“Sounds like a great plan for a criminal or a video game. And for my accountant?”  
“Good reasons why he can’t refuse our wish. Trust me, Babe.”  
“Don’t Babe me or I’ll hurt you, Casanova.”  
“Keep this spirit for him.” Don knocked on the door, entered and they found themselves with the secretary of Sofia’s accountant.   
“Hello Karryn.” Sofia greeted her.   
“Miss Curtis, how are you today?”  
“Fine, thanks. Can we see Mister Windsow?”  
“Do you have an appointment?” The secretary looked into her appointments book.   
“No, we were in the area and Mister Flack…”  
“It won’t take long.” Don interrupted Sofia. “It’s important. There’s no car on the customer space, he should be available, isn’t he?” With his best smile he looked into the eyes of the woman on the other side of the table, making her blush a little bit.   
“I can ask him…” Karryn took the telephone and dialed a number.   
“That would be really nice of you, Karryn.”  
Sofia bid her lips. Don was using his charm to get what he wanted. He was good, Karryn was in his hands. Hopefully he had the same effect on Mister Windsow. He was the one they had to get into their boat for whatever plan Don had.   
“You can go inside.” Karryn said after she finished the call.   
“Thanks Karryn, that was really nice of you.” Don pushed Sofia into the next room. “I still have it.” He whispered.   
“Absolutely. Will you do the same with him?”  
“If I have to.” They entered the room.   
Mister Windsow sat behind his desk, important looking files all over the desk. “Miss Curtis, what can I do for you and your company?”  
“Hello Mister Windsow, it’s about my house and the extra room on the garages.”  
“I told you, there’s no money for such a room. Your modi-fication of the attic cost more money than we planed and you haven’t worked for a long time, there’s nothing left for a new room. Even when you get slightly more rent, it’s not possible from this point of view.”  
“He, I’m Detective Flack, I’m the one who wants the second room.” Don sat down, his eyes on the other man. “What you say sounds reasonable. Can you also tell us what you need to make Sofia’s wish true?”  
“She needs more money.”  
“How much money does she need?”  
“For a second room? At least ten thousand and there’s no way she has the money the next months. I’m sorry, it’s not possible to realize a second room.”  
“I don’t like not possible as an answer. What if I give you ten grands and we charge it against the rent I’ve to pay for this room? Will you allow her the room then?”  
“Don…” Sofia started but was stopped with a move of Don’s hand.   
“Can she build the room with ten grands?”  
“Yes, but…”  
“No but, I don’t like buts. I write you a check for ten grands and she can call the builder after Christmas, gets the room and if there’s some spare money maybe a huge balcony on top of it. Do we have a deal?”  
“I need to calculate…”  
“There’s the calculator.”  
“We need cost estimates from different companies…and when I have them I can tell you if ten thousand dollars are enough.”  
“For one room? I’m positive it will be enough.”  
“Bring me the cost estimates and I can tell you more.”  
“We will be back soon with the papers. Thanks for your time, Mister Windsow.” Don got up.   
“Make an appointment next time and I can prepare myself better for your request.”  
“We’ll let Karryn know when we’ll be back. See you soon.”   
“Bye Mister Windsow.” Sofia still felt strange. She had barely said a word, was confused and irritated by Don, telling her accountant he wanted to give him ten thousand dollar if he agreed on the new room.   
“See you soon Karryn, we call you for a new appointment. Have nice Christmas.” His arm linked with Sofia’s Don walked out of the office, down the stairs to a little coffee shop next to the office building.   
“Coffee?”  
“Explanation?” Sofia shot back. Slowly her mind started working again.   
“A coffee is a delicious beverage you need to wake up in the morning and keep you going the rest of the day.”  
“For your behave. Ten grands?”  
“Hey, I want this room.”  
“Don, you pay rent and not the room. It’s my house, I’ve to organize money to build a new room.”  
“Are you mad because I offered the guy the money or because I never told you what my plan was?”  
Now he had her. “Both.” She felt stupid when he offered the money to her accountant and she had no clue about his plan. Like a child, you don’t have to ask when you make a decision about her life, her belongings. “You could have told me you want to give him money so he changes his mind.”  
“Discuss with you for hours? You would have never accepted it, I know you Sofia. Like you said, it’s your house, you have to get the money. I’m your friend, I want the room, I use the room. When I help you out with money it’s pure selfishness.”  
“You could have told me.”  
“It’s still in your hands. When you don’t like my offer, you don’t take it. Your accountant will be happy when we don’t come back with cost estimates.”  
“Give me a night to sleep over it and we’ll talk about it tomorrow again. And if we go back to Mister Windsow you’ll tell me before we go there what you want to tell him! Am I clear, Detective?”  
“Absolutely LT.” He pulled her in his arms and kissed her on the lips. “I love you too and you’re very sexy when you’re mad. This fire in your eyes is really sexy, I bet it turns Sara on when you fight and makes it very easy to make-up afterwards.”  
“Kiss me again and you’ll be in pain because first I’ll kick your balls up your throat and then Sara will do the same.”  
“My next girlfriend needs as much fire as you have. I like strong women. Get us the table over there, I get you a coffee and a muffin with cream.”  
Sofia sent him an evil look. He didn’t take her very serious. And when thought he could buy her with a coffee and a muffin with cream he was…on a good way! 

“Wow, you look awesome.” Shane stared at Sara when she came down the stairs.   
“Down boy, you can look but when you try to touch, you’ll lose your hand and your brain in the pants.” The brunette wore a short red dress and high heels. Her hair was up and her make-up lined out her eyes. Sofia liked the outfit so much, she had taken it off as soon as Sara was ready to leave the room and made them be late.   
“When you come to work like this we’ll have a lot of more visitors.”  
“Yeah, all horny and with plate sized eyes. No thanks.”  
“The hickey on your throat tells me Sofia loves this dress too. Are you redressed?”  
“Why would that be your business?”  
“Pure male curiosity.”  
“One of the mysteries you’ll never unravel.”  
“Ouch. Wow, another breath-taking lady.” His eyes were on Sofia, who wore a tight black jeans, a black shirt and black shoes. Clothes, that covered her prosthesis up but showed her legs were still slender and her ass firm.   
“Two more will come down. Are you excited, Shane?”  
“Absolutely. Two more? Wow.”  
“Yes, Jules and her cousin will join us too. So will Don and Greg.”  
“I’ve to share you? What a pity.”  
“Honey, you don’t have to share us, you will never have us. No matter who joins us. We’ll find somebody else for you.” Sara smiled and got her arm around Shane.   
“No, not today. Lets wait until after Christmas, saves money.”  
“Costs you not having sweet kisses under the Christmas tree”  
“You’ll have enough kisses under the Christmas tree and everywhere else for the whole city.” Tanya came down the stairs.   
“I can hear jealousy.” Sara kissed Sofia’s cheek.   
“No.”  
“Oh yes. I hear it too.” Jules and Greg came down the stairs too. “My cousin is jealous, she wants to be loved too but nobody loves bitches.”  
“Male dogs do.”  
“We can leave her in an animal shelter to find her next husband.”   
“Ha, ha, ha. Really nice, former favorite cousin.” Tanya pouted. “Everybody is mean to me, that’s not fair.”  
“I’m not mean to you, I let you win sometimes.” Don said, the car keys in his hands.  
“You don’t let me win, you lose because I’m better.”  
“Yeah, sure.”  
“Boah! You! You were such a loser yesterday, I kicked your ass in Tony Hawks three times a row.”  
“You were lucky.”  
“Lucky? We’ll play again tomorrow and you’ll be lucky when I don’t kick your ass personally after I kicked it on the screen. Arrogant bastard.”  
“Is this your Christmas spirit?” Shane asked.   
“Yeah, little fights about video games, could be worse.” Sara smiled. “Are we ready?”  
“We are. Who drives with whom?”  
“I take you two and another one with me.” Shane offered.   
“Take Tanya, I take Greg and Jules with me and we can have an adult conversation.” Don smirked.   
“I’m mature enough to ignore that. Yeah, take me with you, Shane, I like your hair, it’s not as boring as most people’s hair; especially clean cut cops.”  
“This way of bitching around is familiar, reminds me of two women when they had to work together the first time.” Sofia got into Sara’s arm. Don and Tanya were a little bit like herself and Sara. With the difference, they were mocking each other now, while the two women were serious with their dislike; or Sara was with her dislike.   
“I’ve no idea of whom you’re talking. Come on Honey, time to see a club from the inside again.” The brunette kissed the blonde. Fights. Who did fight? They never fought. Not that she could remember. Was there a life before their love? 

Loud dance beats let Sofia forget her prosthesis as soon as she was in the club and saw the dance floor. Why sit at a table or stand around when you could dance, feel and enjoy the music. Like back in the days when she was every weekend in a club.   
“Your girlfriend enjoys her night out a lot.” Jules said to Sara when they both stepped off the dance floor.   
“She does, it’s good to see her happy. You seem to enjoy yourself too.”  
“I do. Although I’ve to say I’m a little bit tired. One week after the birth of the babies and no nights with undisturbed sleep. And my thoughts go to the twins all the time. They are safe with my parents but…it’s strange not to be with them and I feel a little bit guilty, like a bad mother. After only one week I leave them behind to have fun.”  
“You’re allowed to have fun. That doesn’t make you a bad mom, it makes you a happy mom and a happy mom is good for the kids.”  
“Are you doing my job now, therapist Sara?” Jules smiled.   
“Yes. Am I any good?”  
“You’re great.”  
“Good to know, in case I want to try something new. Sara Sidle, I give you advice for all your questions in life. Sixty dollars per hour.”  
“I see you know how to make good money.”  
“We need this kind of income for two or three months and Sofia can build Don’s second room and I get my sunroom on top. A huge sunroom with a spa inside for great swimming fun in winter time.”  
“You’re dreaming. What does your therapist say about your dreams?”  
“Finally no nightmares? I won’t see her this year anymore. Her cousin closed her office and she has to take over all the clients. The poor woman has a lot of work on her hands, she doesn’t need me too. Especially not because she knows I’m in very good hands when I’m at home. The mother of my gorgeous godchild always sees when something is wrong with me and makes me talk. A great friend.”  
“Sounds more like somebody who’s shrinky all the time.”  
“No, she’s a friend all the time. A great friend and I love her.”  
“Your girlfriend won’t be happy when she hears you love somebody else.”  
“She’ll be all…oh no!” Sara made a face like her teeth ached.   
“What?”  
“I don’t believe this!”  
“What?” Jules tried to see what got Sara’s attention. It couldn’t be Sofia, the blonde was dancing with Don and Sara looked in another direction. Greg and Tanya were also dancing, a few yards away. What or who ruined Sara’s mood?   
“She saw her! If this slut dares to get close to Sofia I’ll kill her with my bare hands!”  
“Who?”  
“Ellen.”  
“Who is Ellen? You’re not talking about THE Ellen? The TV…”  
“No, if it was comedy Ellen I’d be happy, I’m talking about alley cat Ellen, the little slut, who was with Sofia before we became a couple, who doesn’t deserve Sofia and thinks she’s God’s gift to everybody. If she dares to get her filthy hands on my girlfriend I’ll…”  
“I got you.” Jules put her hand on Sara’s shoulder. “Where is she?”  
“Long red hair, a top that looks more like she wears her bikini top and shorts that reminds of a thong. She’s way too old to wear it and this isn’t the beach. Stupid c…”  
“You really don’t like her.”  
“I hate her…and she’s on her way to Sofia.” Before Jules could do anything Sara left her and was on her way to Sofia too, to arriver there before Ellen.   
“Honey…” She got between Don and Sofia.   
“Hey, do you wanna dance?” Sofia kissed Sara and hugged her.   
“No, I…”  
“Yuck!” Don said. His eyes fell on Ellen, who stood behind Sofia. “A slutty alley cat.”  
“A sexual frustrated cop, who gets no woman and has to ask his landlady to dance with him. Who looks ridiculous when she limps around.”  
Sara’s right hand turned into a fist, ready to smash into Ellen’s face but was stopped by Sofia. She knew her lover would lose her self-control when Ellen was around.   
“What do you want?”  
“I wonder what YOU want here. It’s a dance club, not a disabled meeting point. Your time in clubs like this is over, Sofia. Why don’t you limp home and stay there? Or isn’t there a club for people like you? They’ve Paralympics, why not a paraclub?”  
“Why don’t you leave us alone, Ellen?”  
“I try to make this club nicer, Donald Duck.”  
“Quite easy, leave and it’s a great club.”   
“Cute. Why don’t you look for a frustrated woman for yourself? Look, she looks like she won’t get anything better than you.” Ellen pointed at Jules, who joined them. “Nothing special, she fits perfectly to you. Two average people, too far away from being beautiful to be in the way of people, who should be here. Belong here.”  
“Interesting.” Jules said and gave Ellen a good look over.   
“You’re so not my type, fatty. Lose some weight.”   
“I’m one of the best therapists in this country, she seems to be such a hard case of a narcissistic personality even I would say, it’s impossible to help her. A hopeless case. Some of them are, she is one definitely.”  
“I don’t need a therapist, everything about me is perfect. Shrink her, with that body she needs therapy.”  
“Sofia is fine, there’s no reason to change anything of her. But you won’t see that. Why don’t you go somewhere else? Your eyes will be happy when they don’t have to see us anymore.”  
“Unfortunately you’re in this club…hello cutie, I haven’t seen you for a while.” Ellen smiled when she saw Greg.   
“Lucky me. Hey babe, are you all right?” He pulled Jules in his eyes and kissed her. “Would you give me the honor to dance with me?”  
“Her? Fatty?”  
“Sure. Where’s Tanya?” Jules asked   
“Dancing with Shane, I told her, I want the most beautiful woman in my arms, that’s her cousin.”  
“Her poor ego.”  
“No, she agreed. Come on.” Ignoring Ellen, he got Jules in his arms and pulled her in the middle of the dance floor.   
“Fatty gets the cutie? Something is wrong with this world.”  
“Come on, landlady, I invite you and your girlfriend to a cocktail.” Don decided it was best to ignore Ellen and leave her alone. One arm around Sara’s waist, one around Sofia’s he pulled both women to the bar. “What do you want to drink?”  
“A strychnine drink for the cunt.”   
“Don’t say such bad words, you’re a godmother, you’ve to behave yourself.” Don kissed Sara’s cheek.   
Grumbling the brunette turned and looked at her lover. “Why did you stop me from placing my fist on her nose?”  
“Because you’d get in trouble for it and I don’t want Don to get you out of jail for doing the right things, that’s wrong in front of the law.”  
“She’s…”  
“She’s not worth talking about her any longer. Don’t let her ruin our night out. We enjoyed so far.”  
“Yes…” Sara wanted to tell Sofia that Ellen lied, was wrong, had no idea and was…a bad person. For hurting her, for being insensitive, for being this cruel to other people. But she didn’t say it. Her lover wished they’d stop talking about Ellen and she was right. Talking about her was wasting time. Still, she felt her anger and fury. 

Pulling her girlfriend in her arms, gently kissing her, Sara felt how the tensions fell off her lover. No matter how good Sofia tried to look like she was happy, after Ellen left, the blonde wasn’t that relaxed anymore, wasn’t that happy like she was before. These words, these wrong words, hurt the blonde more than she wanted to admit. To herself, to all others.   
Now that they were in bed, alone in their room, Sara had to get back to what happened this evening, had to talk with Sofia about it. Comfort her, show her the actress was wrong, lied and only said all these things to hurt her and her friends. It had nothing to do with reality, it was all about revenge. Cheap revenge.   
“I’m fine.” Sofia tried to reassure her girlfriend, nor very convincing.   
“Don’t lie to me. You’re not fine, you’re hurt. Don’t believe her, Sofia. You know why she said it, not because it's true, only to hurt you, because you don't want her anymore. She can't take rejections.”  
“I do not dance like before.”  
“So?”  
“So I look…strange.”  
“And Jules is fat.”  
“No, that’s bullshit.”  
“It’s as true as you dance weird. She hurt you, she knows it and she enjoys it. It’s part of her payback. Don’t let her win, don’t let her enjoy your pain.”  
“Maybe…”  
“Is her or my opinion important to you?”  
“Yours of course.”  
“In my eyes you dance wonderful, you’re sexy and the most beautiful woman in the club this night. Having a prosthesis doesn’t make you ugly, doesn’t make you look weird. You’re sexy. You’re my girlfriend, my sexy swagger woman, the only one I want. You’re the only woman I love, you’re the only woman I can love. For no other woman I had given in, you’re special, better than all the rest. If you ever decide you don’t want me anymore, there won’t be another one. Only you. You’re my life, you’re the one I want to marry.” To support her words she kissed her lover gently and pulled her even closer. She wished she could pull Sofia inside her, make her feel all the love she felt for her.   
“If it wouldn’t get you into trouble I had let you punch the crap out of her. But I think that was part of her plan, make one of us lose control and do something stupid, something she could use against us.”  
“You’re too smart to step into her traps.”  
“How high is the possibility that we end in the same club she’s in? There are so many clubs in this area and we have to meet her. How is that possible? It’s like she’s stalking us.”  
“She’s in this clubs to meet important people, to find people, who can help her become successful. This is a new club, it’s a celebrity club, I saw a few stars – or Shane pointed them out to me – the perfect place for her. When we go to a small club nobody knows, we won’t meet her there.”  
“A club for the disabled.”  
“You lost half of your leg, she lost her entire brain a long time ago. That’s worse, we can’t even say it’s brain damage, when there’s nothing it can’t be damaged. Her place is in a club for brainless sluts.”  
”Don told you not to swear, you might get used to it and swear in front of the twins. Jules won’t be happy when she has swearing kids and can’t find a daycare place for them because all teachers and babysitter will send them away.”  
“Sorry. When I saw her in the club, before she was next to you, I felt like grabbing her, pulling her out of the club and kick her ass so she flies far, far away…into a volcano in Hawaii or Mexico.”  
“You’re cute.” Sofia kissed her lover softly. Maybe there was no reason for her to be sad, her lover was head over heels in love with her, there was no doubt that for Sara, she was the most beautiful woman and the only one. Why did she care about other people? Cared about what Ellen said? A woman she didn’t like, was one of her biggest mistakes. Was she drunk the whole time? Or temporally blind and without a brain when she dated the actress? Thank God she woke up and fell in love with Sara.   
“Looks like tonight was another experience I can talk about in therapy.”  
“Yes. I hope you had at least a little bit of fun.”  
“Until Ellen appeared I had a lot of fun and yes, I want to go out with you again. It’s a great club, good music and I still love dancing, no matter how it looks. You don’t think I look ridiculous, that’s the only thing that counts.”  
“To me you look sexy on the dance floor and whenever you want to go out and dance again, I’ll be with you.”  
“You’re not the biggest fan of clubs.”  
“No, but I’m huge fan of watching my girlfriend dancing. Plus the good thing is, you don’t want me to be with you all the time, when I feel like having a break, sit for a few minutes, it’s okay too. We’re there with our friends, nobody has to be alone it’s fun.”  
“It is. I’m sure Don and Shane will join us again.”  
“Very likely. Also Tanya, she had a lot of fun and she’s a good dancer.”  
“A hot dancer. You can see her Latin blood, she knows how to move her ass and shake her body. I was jealous, even before my accident I couldn’t dance the way she does. The men were crazy and bent over backwards to have a dance with her. Lucky Greg and Don, they got more than one dance.”  
“Yeah, especially Don. Do you think Tanya and Don…?”  
“I don’t know…they’re cute together. But I’m not sure if Don’s ready for another relationship.”  
“Christmas is coming, the best time of the year to fall in love. Sweets, romantic music, candle light, the mistletoe…we need one under every door, I want a lot of reasons to kiss you all the time we see each other.”  
“We do nothing else all the time. We’re disgustingly in love.”  
“I don’t care how we are in love as long as we are in love.” Sofia snuggled into Sara’s arms. Her lover. She was such a lucky woman to have Sara by her side. And soon both had two days off together, would celebrate their own Christmas and spend the whole time together. 

24th of December

A closed case and Sofia wasn’t happy. It was the wrong case. Not the baby case. Only a B&E in Hollywood. Okay, she helped a family to get all their Christmas presents back, made their Christmas into a celebration again, but she preferred to get all the babies back to their parents. That was worth more than video games, clothes, jewelries and whatever else the family had planed for their Christmas.   
“Hey CSI, how are you?” Lynn entered the room and sat on the edge of Sofia’s desk.   
“Hey officer, I closed a case for you.” They worked the case together. One of the few things Sofia enjoyed about the case. It was not a surprise that her boss sent her to other crime scenes after there were no other babies missing and they had checked the evidence over and over. But the blonde felt more like checking again, making very sure, they didn’t miss a thing. The smallest thing could be important.   
“I heard about that. Good work. Are you off the clock now?”  
“No, I’ve to stay longer, we’re short handed. What about you?”  
“Same. Ten to twelve hours because it’s Christmas Eve. What about Sara?”  
“They closed a two and she should be home. With Shane.”  
“Her colleague?”  
“Yes. His girlfriend dumped him last week, he’s a funny guy, it will be fun having him around. They are preparing dinner.”  
“For the whole house family?”  
“No. Greg, Jules, the twins and Tanya are with Greg’s parents at Jules’s parent’s place. We three, Don, Sally and Tony. What about you?”  
“Dirk and me planed dinner for us and tomorrow we’re with my parents.”  
“Wow, first Christmas together.”  
“I’m dying when I think about it.”  
“It’s not the first boyfriend you take home.”  
“No, but each time it’s a…challenge. Were you cool when you took Sara for the first time?”  
“Yes. She died often enough for both of us. I knew my parents would love her and I was right.”  
“It’s a pity they couldn’t stay for Christmas.”  
“The captain has to work like you, officer. Will you and Dirk come over for our little Christmas party in three days?”  
“Sure. What about Kyle?”  
“He has to work first and comes later. The whole gang is back together.”  
“Dirk is jealous because I’m having contact to my ex. He wonders if Kyle and me are really apart and why we can’t draw a line and don’t see each other anymore.”  
“You work together, you’ve got friends together, there’s no reason not to see your ex anymore – unless she’s a slut and tries to give you a hard time all the time.”  
“Ellen. I heard you met her in a club.”  
“Unfortunately.”  
“She said some stupid things about your leg?”  
“My leg, my way of dancing, me, Jules. Sara almost lost her self-control and punched the bitch.”  
“Nice thought. Maybe when she sees her the next time and no witnesses are around she’ll do it. If I get called to them, I’m sure I’ll let her go away with self defense. Or a reflex. Did her brother come back?”  
“No, he stays away. Looks like he understands the more he pushes her, the smaller are his chances to talk to her, spend time with her. She made it very clear that the one meeting was the one and only he gets. If she ever feels like having contact with her family, she’ll contact them. Until then they’re supposed to stay away.”  
“I saw her only once or twice with your parents, but it looked to me like they are very close and she’s happy to have them.”  
“She is. Secretly she’ll be sad somehow because she doesn’t have this kind of relationship with her parents, but she’s glad to have my parents, loves them and they love her. And Jules’s mother told her to call her Alison because they’re family now too. A cop and a doctor family.”  
“Your girlfriend, the godmother of your doctor’s grandchild.”  
“Yes.”  
“How’s your leg?”  
“Good. No more problems, I went jogging and it didn't hurt. Doctor Bendler checked it yesterday when she visited the twins. They get more and more adorable with each day.”  
“I’ve the feeling next year you’ll tell me with a huge grin on your face you’re pregnant. Could that be, LT?”  
“You never know, officer. If it’s the case I’ll let you know.”  
“I want to be the godmother.”  
“We can talk about that with Sara. Until then, you’ve to work so you can buy my baby a nice present.”  
“His or her first police uniform?”  
“Sara will kill you. Both of us.” Sofia smirked. That was a cute idea. A police uniform for a baby. Should she buy a CSI lab coat and a doctor’s overall for the twins? Wouldn’t that be cute? One of them as a doctor and one as a lab rat. Like their parents. Oh, she had to make a little beeline home tonight. And a stopover at the baby shop.

“Oh, hi.” Sofia looked surprised when she saw Jules in the living room. She thought the therapist was with her children at her parent’s place, having dinner with Greg and his parents. Or waiting for Greg to come home from work, as he had been still in the lab when she left.   
“Merry Christmas Eve.” Jules hugged Sofia. “How was work?”  
“I got a new case and closed it, some success. And yours? Shouldn’t you be with your babies at the doctor’s dining table?”  
“We wait until Greg comes home, drive to their motel, pick them up and go all together to my parents. You can see the babies…after you bought something for them.” Jules pointed to the plastic bag in the blonde’s hand. Baby fashion was written all over it.   
“Yeah…Lynn and me had a great idea…or actually she had an idea for my baby and I used it for your babies. Look at this!” She got a little doctor’s overall and a lab coat out of the bag.   
“Are you serious?”  
“Absolutely. Aren’t they cute? I wanted to buy one each, then I made the decision I want two each. You can dress them up as little doctors or little lab rats. So cute. Your mom will be delighted when she sees her grandchildren are supposed to become doctors and keep the family tradition alive.”  
“My plan was to let my kids decide themselves what they want to be.”  
“When they’re old enough to make this decision they won’t wear these dresses anymore.”  
“You’re crazy, does your therapist know you’ve these ideas?”  
“No, I can tell him Tuesday. Do you think it’s not a good idea?”  
“My mom will love it, Greg will enjoy the lab coats, go to the shop next week to get a CSI outfit and I will take a lot of photos of them. You don’t have to buy so many things for them.”  
“It’s fun.”  
“We take good care of them and you can use the dresses for your baby. Or does it get a police uniform and a CSI vest?”  
Sofia grinned. “Do you think Sara will kill me if I buy something like that for our child? And a ranger uniform.”  
“She loves you, she knows you’re crazy and she expects you to come up with something like that. No, she won’t kill you, she’ll roll her eyes and smile because things like these are reasons why she loves you. If you come home with an ordinary dress she’d be confused. And knowing your mother, it’s clear your baby will get a lot of police stuff. I hope, you won’t buy a gun for your baby or child.”  
“No, no guns in the hands of children and teenager. If our child wants a gun it can join my mother at the firing range when she or she is sixteen. Before that age I don’t want a gun in the hands of my child.”  
“Good. Do you want Jorja and Eric to wear their new dresses tonight?”  
“No, I think for your first Christmas Eve dinner they should wear ordinary clothes. Did Greg tell you when he’s back? I saw him in the lab when I left.”  
“Any minute. He only had to finish a report.”  
“Shall I help you getting the twins ready for dinner? So you can leave ASAP, I think his parents are already in Silver Lake, aren’t they?”  
“Yes, they arrived an hour ago. Are you and Sara free for dinner tomorrow?”  
“No, sorry, we’ve a Christmas party with the rest of the house and Shane after work. Or dinner, not a real party. Why?”  
“My parents wants to have you around.”  
“Maybe when we have our two days off. Does your parents have tomorrow off?”  
“Yes. They worked today, have to go back to work on Boxing Day but for their first Christmas with their grandchildren, they got a day off.”  
“A big family party tomorrow.”  
“The whole day. We’ll have breakfast together and stay until after dinner. Tomorrow evening I’ll be happy to be in bed and sleep – if the twins let me sleep.”  
“They’ll be tired too after having all the family playing with them, talking to them, focus on them. Like when you left them with your parents and your mother and her sisters pampered them all the time so they were tired and slept almost the whole night.”  
“Yeah, that worked out good. But the next weeks I want to be with my babies and don’t leave them with my mom.”  
“You can leave them with me and go out for dinner with your fiancé.”  
“Maybe. Dinner is all right, an overnight stay not. They’re supposed to be with their mother and father.”  
“Or auntie Sofia.”  
“At the moment they’re with auntie Sara and Tanya.”  
“Lets see them, show them their new outfits. Where’s Don? Is he back home?”  
“Yes, he is in his room. Your whole house family is here – except for Greg.”  
“And he’ll leave as soon as he’s here. I want to meet his parents too. Sara knows them.”  
“I’m sure he takes them here at one point, introducing them to his landlady.”  
“Friend.”  
“Favorite colleague.”  
“Or so.” Sofia smiled. Two steps at once she went upstairs into the second bedroom to find her girlfriend and Tanya dressing the twins.   
“Hey. Oh, that’s a nice picture, a shame I don’t have my camera with me.” Sara and Eric fighting about how to wear the jumper.  
“He doesn’t want to wear his jumper, doesn’t understand it’s cold outside and he needs to dress up properly otherwise he might get a cold.”  
“Get used to it, you’ll have this fights more often with our baby. I never wanted to wear my jumper or jacket when I was a kid and my mother was really annoyed.”  
“Great, thanks Honey. Do you have anything helpful to say?”  
“Yes. I love you and I bought something for the twins.” Sofia got the dresses out. Tanya started laughing when she saw them while Sara rolled her eyes. Just like Jules said.   
“Who will be the doctor and who the lab rat?” Tanya asked.  
“I bought both twice, they can wear the same outfit at the same time. As twins they’re supposed to wear the same, look the same.”  
“They don’t look the same.” Sara said.   
“No, but we can dress them in the same clothes. So cute. Do you have a mini stethoscope and a mini test tube?” Tanya took the doctor dress. “I can get a little tooth patch and they can be little dentists. My first assistants.”  
“They don’t have teeth, shouldn’t you have assistants with teeth?”  
“No, I need assistants without caries, they’re perfect. And when people see them, they’ll be relaxed and not scared anymore. Wait until you have your teeth, Jorja, your auntie Tanya will make sure you will never have toothache and won’t be scared of me when I’m your dentist. There will be plenty of sugar free candies in my room.”  
“Also for bigger kids?” Sofia cocked her head.   
“You mean for you? Yes, you can have some candy too. Nine more days and I start working, will you be my first patient?”  
“Next Monday? An early morning appointment?”  
“Eight?”  
“Perfect. If I go immediately I’m fine for the rest of the year.”  
“I want to see you twice a year if you’re without pain.”  
“Twice?” Why?”  
“To have an extra piece of candy.”  
Sofia made a grimace. Seeing her dentist twice a year? When she had no pain? Just to check? Tanya needed to have really good candies to get her onto her chair again in June.   
“Sara, will you come too?”  
“I’m fine, I saw my dentist two months ago. Give me an appointment in April.”  
“Okay.”  
“Greg’s there!” Jules called from downstairs.   
“Heard that, kids? Your daddy is home. Time for you to come down and meet your grandparents from San Diego. I’m sure they’ve got plenty of presents for you. Come on, Jorja, I take you with me.”  
“And I take Eric…or can he stay with us?”  
“No, he has to come too.”  
“Bugger.” Sara sighed. Wasn’t it enough when they took one twin? Eric could stay with her and Sofia, when Jules fed him and left a bottle or two, he had all he needed for the evening and night. She and Sofia were more fun than grandparents. 

After a lot of pizza, red wine, potato chips and chocolate Sofia and Sara didn’t feel like moving an inch. Sally and Tony had carried each other up the stairs a few minutes ago, Don was more asleep then awake while his eyes followed the movie on the TV screen.   
“I feel like a huge chocolate ball.” Carefully Sofia petted her belly.   
“You had a whole bar, a big one.”  
“Yes. So great. Much better than a formal dinner. Poor Greg, he has to handle his parents and his in-laws.”  
“He’s doing fine, Tanya asks if we can give her a reason to leave the celebration.” Don said, his cell phone in his hands.   
“Why?”  
“Jules’s mother invited the doctor, she picked for her date last week so they can talk and get to know each other. He’s not interested in sport, thinks video games are a waste of time and only for teenager, who are too stupid to learn for school and fast food should be forbidden. Golf, a big car, a twelve to fourteen hours work day and opera are his favorite conver-sation themes and activities. She says a few more words and she’ll spill her red wine in his face and when he puts his hands once more on her knee she’ll place her high heels in his crotch and wants us to arrest him for sexual harassment.”  
“Sounds like she can handle him alone.” Sara chuckled.   
“Her aunt won’t be happy when she really kicks his balls up his throat.”  
“Maybe she will stop to look for doctor dates for her family. Jules wasn’t happy with the doctor she chose for her neither. Also one of these rich men, who wants to show all his great toys to impress women...wait, it was the same guy, wasn't he? Gosh, Alison must really like him." Sara chuckled. "Did your mom look for police captains for you to date, Honey?”  
“Yes, especially when I dated guys who weren’t…exactly on her side of the law and liked hot and fast motorbikes, rock music and drinks.”  
“You and me come from cop families, our parents, grand-parents and great-grandparents are cops and they expect us to find another cop and have many future cop children.”  
“My parents are very happy with my ranger girlfriend.” Sofia kissed Sara and left a little bit of chocolate on her cheek. Her lips had to be still brown.   
“From all women you’ve dated since I know you, she’s the best. And I can’t imagine you ever dated a man, who can hold a candle to her.”  
“No, I haven’t. Not even the rocker.”  
“I’m above rocker, drunken musicians and whoever else you dated to annoy your parents. Wow, thanks.” Sara chuckled.   
“You’re above everybody. Can you carry me upstairs later?”  
“No. Ask Don, he’s the man of the house.”  
“Don?”  
“I only carry you over the threshold when you’re my bride, otherwise I can’t carry you into your room. You want to marry Sara, so it’s her job.”  
“You could carry her upstairs to our bedroom door and I do the rest.” Sara suggested.   
“Or your girlfriend walks herself.”  
“I wait for Greg to come home, take one of the twins in my arms and he can carry us both upstairs.”  
“I’m not sure if Greg likes this idea of risking his back and the health of one of his babies. Why did you eat so much chocolate? How will you explain our kid not to eat all the time candy when you do it yourself?”  
“Sara is the role model for the healthy diet.”  
“Did you say ‘our kid’?” Sara sat up. Did she understand correctly? Did Don really say what she heard? How will you explain OUR kid not to eat all the time candy. Their kid. Their kid meant, he was involved, it was his kid too.   
“I did.”  
“Does that mean…?”  
“Yeah, I thought about it and if you want me to be the father of your baby, I’ll be the father.” Both women jumped up and landed on his lap, kissed him. “Under two conditions.”   
“Which ones?” Sara asked, placing another big kiss on his cheek. He said yes. They had the best father for their child.   
“First of all, I want to be involved, want the child to know that I’m the father. It doesn’t mean I will try to get custody, but I want in his or her life. As the daddy and not uncle Don.”  
“Of course. We want you to be involved.” Sofia said. He agreed. They didn’t have to go to a sperm bank and get whoever as the father of their child. It would be Don. Their friend, the best man for the job as a daddy.   
“Good. Second. As it should be our child and Sofia is the one who will be pregnant, I think Sara’s ovum should be used. This way we all three are involved. If it’s Sofia’s ovum and she’s pregnant, I’m afraid Sara might feel left out at one point, might think, it’s not her child because she has done nothing to bring it into this world. It should be really our child, have something of all three of us. And when Sofia is nine months pregnant with the child, she’ll have a huge influence on it…it will end up as a chocolate monster.”  
“All your wishes will be fulfilled. We’ll have a baby.” Sara couldn’t believe it. They’d really become a family and have a baby. Their own baby. Even the fact Don wanted her ovum for the baby didn't scare. At least not at the moment, it could change later.   
“And it will end up in law enforcement.” Sofia grinned. “My mom will make sure it has a place in the police academy before it starts kindergarten.”  
“Your mom can be the loving grandmother and not the life planer for our child. If our child decides to be a clerk, a sport star, a secretary or a truck driver, we’ll support it and won’t try to change its mind. Do you understand me, Darling?” Sara poked her finger into Sofia’s chest.   
“Ouch. Yes. Stop that. Be nice to the mother of our child.”  
“Do you know when you want to get pregnant? Or try it for the first time? Shall I take you into my room and we make a Christmas child, Sofia?”  
“Remember Sara’s ovum? And when you say that again she’ll kill you, which would be a shame because then you can’t be the father anymore. We talked about it and thought of late spring, after our next holiday trip.”  
“Okay. And your parents will move to L.A. and become full time grandparents?”  
“They’re discussing it. Dad can work at the university here and mom will be busy with the baby. Or they’ll both be at home and come up with crazy things for the baby. I can see them building a castle or whatever in their future garden to offer the child a great playground. Until they made a decision we won’t tell them about your decision so they can decide without any pressure.” Sofia sighed. Even when the news of Don becoming the father of their grandchild should play in Sofia’s hands.   
“They’ll come here, I’ve no doubts about it. When you watch them here, see how much they enjoy having you close, it’s only a question of short time before they move. Wait until your mother is retired and they’ll have a house in Silver Lake before you can say move. Your daddy wants his baby girl around and see how she’s happy with her future wife. And your mother is the same.”  
“I hope you’re right. We’ll be a family soon.” Sofia snuggled into Sara’s arm, still sitting on Don’s lap. “A baby.”  
“I want my second room before the baby is born.”  
“We have a few cost estimates and when we get the rest I’ll make an appointment with Mister Windsow. Or do you want to call Karryn and flirt with her again?”  
“If that helps. It got us into his office.”  
“Mhm, this guy charmed the secretary, make her blush.”   
“If that gets him the room I think it’s okay.” Sara smiled. “You did and do the same, use your charm and you sexy body to get what you want. He’s your brother, he’s the same.”  
“He could be my brother, yes. Soon we’ll be related, really related because of our baby. Will our baby also carry our rings when we get married?”  
“Sure. And Don’s rings when he gets married.”  
“Great, our baby will be in high school or college by then.”  
“I’m sure we’ll find your Mrs. Right earlier. Wait until you take our baby out for a walk, the women find out you’re a single father. They love men, who take care of babies, take the responsibility for their kids. You’ll get more admire than you’ve got pages in your little black book.” Sara blinked at him.   
“I buy a new book for the new admires.” He got his arms around both women. Yes, it was the right decision to have a baby with them. If he never found the right woman for himself, at least he would have a child. A little piece of him, a little Don. And there weren’t any better mothers than Sara and Sofia. 

“Mommy Sofia.” Sara pulled her lover in her arms and kissed her.   
“Mommy Sara.” With a smile Sofia placed Sara’s hand on her belly. “Soon you’ll feel our baby here, feel how it moves.”  
“Soon? It will take a few months until the baby will move and first you have to be pregnant. I’m a little bit scared of…of the time when we try it. It will be painful, it will make us nervous and put us under a lot of pressure.” Sara felt already how fear crept up on her, make her wonder if they were doing the right thing. A baby. Wasn’t it too early? After only two years, weren’t they rushing into something they might regret later?   
“The first doubts arrived?”  
“Yes. Aren’t we selfish?”  
“Because we want a baby?”  
“What if it doesn’t work out with us? When we find out at one point, we’re not meant to be together forever? What will happen to the baby? Custody fights, bad words, it will hurt the baby and…makes its life harder.”  
“When you see it from this point nobody should have children. Greg and Jules aren’t as long together as we are, they’ve got twins and no guarantee that it will work out. You have to trust yourself and what you feel is real.”  
“I’m sorry…it’s just…I’m afraid it will be like when I was a child. That our child will have a life like I had.”  
“Never.” All the things Sara told her about her childhood, all the bad things that happened to her, these things would never happen to their child. They loved each other, they’d love their child and never hurt it. Not physically, not mentally.   
“Maybe I need some more therapy…and a lot of conversations with you. Are you sure you want our baby my DNA?” There was her doubt, she knew it would come along.   
“Absolutely. A little Sara. To me you’re the most amazing person I’ve ever met, when our child is like you, I’d be over the moon. Your gap, Don’s blue eyes and my attitude. A true heartbreaker.”  
“Your attitude? Your arrogance?” The brunette smirked.   
“Self-assurance is the world you’re looking for.” Sofia kissed her lover. “I’m with Don, the baby should have something of all of us, but if you don’t feel comfortable when it has your DNA, we will find a solution for it. Although there are no reasons to worry, I'm sure your DNA is perfect; just like you are. Plus remember, DNA isn't everything. You're not like your mother nor father and you're not like your brother.”  
"No...I don't hope so...but...you are a lot like your mother, which is good."  
"And if our child is a lot like you it will be good too. No need to worry, Sara." Sofia kissed her lover again.   
“We have a few more months.”  
“Yes, we do.”  
“I’m happy Don agreed on being the father and I want a baby with you. At the same time I’m unsure and have these doubts, feel stupid because of it.” Sara buried her face in Sofia’s hair. Why was she so complicated?  
“You’re not the only one who’s a little bit scared. I’ve some doubts too. But I’m sure that we can be good parents. We’ll love our baby, will be there for it and make sure, it has everything it needs. There’ll be questions we can answer, but the good thing is, we’ve got friends with babies and my parents are there too, we have people who will help us.”  
“And we’ve got the twins. So far we haven’t done anything wrong with them. Eric seemed to be happy when he was with us, they don’t cry a lot when we go out with them.”  
“Exactly.”  
“What will we do when Don decides he wants to go back to New York?”  
“We’ve got custody, if he wants to go, the baby stays with us. I can’t see him leaving his child, the only reason for him to go back to New York would be, when our child makes the decision it wants to go to a college or university in New York.”  
“New York? The university of Los Angeles is big enough. And if it has to be another university why not one in San Francisco? San Diego? Santa Barbara?”  
“I like your idea.” Sofia laughed. If she had to choose a university for their child, it would be close to her and Sara. “First we have to find a daycare place for it, a high school and then we can all together think about how to go on. Police academy.”  
“Will you buy a uniform for our baby in every size?”  
“Such strange things would never cross my mind.” In every size was a great idea, she had to keep that in mind. What a great idea of her lover.   
“You’ll spoil our baby.”  
“So will you. Don’t try to tell me anything else. I see how you treat Eric, how crazy you are about him and when you have our baby in your arms, you’ll be the same. There’s a mommy gene inside you, my dear.” Sofia kissed her girlfriend.   
“I’m not sure about that, but I love my godchild. He’s the cutest baby I’ve ever seen.”  
“The second cutest baby when we have our baby.”  
“Of course.” Sara snuggled into the blonde’s arms. Maybe she worried too much. Luckily they had a little bit time before their baby was with them. And until then had plenty of time to practice with the twins and become more and more comfortable with babies and their needs. Plus she was sure, whenever she had doubts Sofia would be there for her. And her former therapist, now friend. So far these two women had made her lose every doubt she had and made her replace it with a more positive point of view. 

25th of December

Day number six. Christmas Day. Sofia stared at the calendar on the wall. Six days ago the kidnapper tried for the last time to kidnap a baby, was stopped by a dog and taken to hospital by police because they believed he was a trespasser. After drugging the doctor with a chloroform tissue the man escaped and wasn’t seen since then. There were no more reports of missing babies and with every day without any news and new evidence, the blonde was afraid they had lost the men. They had a photo of the kidnapper, who pretended to be a doctor, they knew how he looked, had his DNA, but no name and no address. The man, or the men, weren’t stupid, they knew their time in L.A. was over and left. Six days. They could be on the other side of the planet, continue their work, relax with the money they got for the babies. Five babies were taken away from their families and – as far as they knew – sold to other families.   
How can you order somebody to kidnap a baby and buy it? What made you think you could be a good father or mother when you destroyed a family? Would they tell their children one they, they weren’t his or her real parents? Clearly they wouldn’t tell them, they were kidnapped for money. So what would they do when their new child asks one day, who his or her real parents are? When the child, as an adult, started to investigate where the real parents live. Or they pretended everything was normal, but what when there was obvious evidence, the child and the parents didn't have much in common? Or it had a rare disease and needed an organ from its real family? Or a DNA test for whatever reason showed, parents and child weren't related. They had the DNA of the babies in the database, it was possible, one day the police told the child or then adult, her or his parents weren't the real parents. Would they make up stories to explain their lie? Or, what scared Sofia a little bit, see the new knowledge of the child as a threat and kill it?   
“Where are you and your thoughts?” Greg sat next to her.   
“The kidnapper. We haven’t heard of them for six days now. It’s good no more children were kidnapped, but we haven’t stopped them. They’re still free and there’s nothing we can do to get them into prison, prevent that somewhere else they’ll do the same, destroy more families and sell babies like shoes.”  
“Photos of him are with border control, at bus stations and airports. When they try to leave the country, there’s a high possibility he’ll be recognized.”  
“Or he changes his look. To blonde, like he had when he was …when he delivered the stuffed bear.”  
“True. Facial recognition might catch him.”  
“Hopefully. How was your evening with the whole family?”  
“Nice. Jules and my parents go along fine and they sent me a few photos from their lunch today. When I’m back with them tonight the twins will get their presents. Oh and you will like this one.” He pulled his cell phone out of the pocket, opened the folder with photos and showed it to Sofia.   
“Hihi.” The twins wore the dresses she bought for them yesterday. Jorja the lab coat and Eric the doctor’s overall. “Cute. Can I have that as a poster?”  
“Sure. We take photos of the twins every day and make a photo lifeline story of them. Each one has a big photo album and for the first year we’ll put one photo of every day in it, then every week one until they’re three.”  
“Cool idea.” She bid on her lips, Greg didn’t know Don would be the father of Sofia’s and Sara’s baby and she didn’t want to tell him here at work. It was something to share when they were at home, with their friends. “Any news of your new home?”  
“We’ll talk to the Howards after Christmas, probably they’ll move out at the beginning of the new year and we can get into the house by the middle of January. Latest by the end. You won’t have a full house forever.”  
“I like my full house, but you and Jules need more space.”  
“It’s very cozy in your room, true. Should be perfect for the twins, this close to their parents.”  
“Psychological the best thing for them. And when they’re bigger…do you plan to tell them? About the case, that the men were in front of your house? They were targets?”  
“No. Not until they’re grown-ups.”  
“Good.” Sofia couldn’t imagine a story like this was good for children. It was scary, could turn their world into a bad world, full of danger and risks. Not the best condition for children to enjoy their childhood, have fun and explore the world.   
“Sanders, Curtis, new case. 419, East Hollywood.” Their boss called. “Homicide is on their way.”  
“A 419?” Greg looked at his watch. He wouldn’t be on time for dinner. “Who kills somebody on Christmas Day?”  
“A lot of people other people. Suddenly they’re all together in one room, have to talk to each other, realize how annoying the other one is, one snaps and we’ve got a case.” Sofia sighed. Christmas time was high peek for suicides and family fights, that sometimes ended up with a body. Too much time together wasn’t good for everybody. 

The Hollywood Freeway in the west of them was busy. Greg parked their car next to a police car and stepped out.   
“Isn’t this Little Armenia?”   
“Yes, I think so.”  
“I had a case here a couple of weeks ago, domestic.”  
“Same road?”  
“If I remember correctly, yes.” He sighed. It wouldn’t be the first time that he had to come back to a former crime scene, not the first time that a domestic ‘disagreement’ turned into murder.   
Sofia took her kit, showed the officer, who stood next to the crime scene tape, her badge and walked with Greg down the road. A couple of yards away she saw Don. Her friend would work longer, just like they had to. When he heard them coming, he turned and it was written all over his face, that he wasn’t happy to see Sofia here.   
“You shouldn’t work this case.” He greeted her.   
“Why?” The blonde furrowed her brows. It was a 419, she worked many of them.  
“Trust me on it.”  
“I got called to this scene, what is it, Don?”  
“Somebody we know.”  
“What?” The shock made her lose her balance for a second. Somebody they know. A friend? Who? For a second she feared it was Sara, but if the victim was her lover, he had called her, had made sure, she came not even close to the scene. Plus Sara responded to the text she sent her ten minutes ago, when she told her, they had a new case and it would be later tonight, she was sorry for it and tried to come back home ASAP.   
Not Sara. Who else? Kyle? Lynn? No, if an officer was down, they had heard about it. Who else? Somebody of the people, she met with her dogs? Why would they be here? That made no sense.   
“Who Don?”  
He stepped aside so she could see the body. Behind her, she heard Greg gasped. It wasn’t a nice picture. A body, female, lay on the sidewalk, half hidden under cardboard. Her body was cut open, reminded Sofia of a report she saw once about slaughterhouses. From the throat to the pelvis the skin was divided by something sharp and opened to both sides. Like the killer wanted them to have a good look inside, see everything. The face was smashed by something, it was impossible to tell how the woman looked before. Her long hair was full with dried blood, both knees were broken, various wounds on the legs and one foot broken. All those things saw Sofia and she saw something else. The reason why Don told her, she shouldn’t work this case. He must have seen the same she did.   
“Gosh, that looks….horrible. Do you have an ID on this poor women?” Greg asked, still very pale.   
“No, no wallet, no ID.”  
“It’s Ellen.”   
“What?” Greg looked in disbelieve at Sofia.  
“It’s Ellen.” Her words were calm.   
“How can you know?”  
“See the little flower on the left tight? One leaf on each side, a golden blossom. Her tattoo.”  
Greg wasn’t sure if the tattoo he saw on the left tight was a flower, there was so much blood, it could everything…and mostly a flower. A lot of women had flowers as a tattoo.  
“Are you sure?”  
“We were involved, I know her body. It’s her.” Sofia was surprised how calm her words were although they sounded a little bit like she said them from out of space.  
“You shouldn’t work this case.” Don repeated. “She’s your ex.”  
“Yes, ex. Not since yesterday, it’s been over two years. I can handle it.”  
“Call William.” Greg suggested. “He should know and when he says it’s okay you work the case, you can work it. It’s really Ellen?” Five days ago they had met the woman in the club and now she was their victim.   
“Definitely. Okay I call our boss. Is it okay for you too, Don?”  
“I’m in no position to tell you to stay home when your boss says you can work the case.”  
“You’re my friend, I don’t want you to worry about me all the time.”  
“I don’t feel comfortable with you working her case, but when your boss decides it’s all right, you’ve my support – as a detective and a friend.”  
“Thanks.” She smiled. Yes, she wanted this case and hoped her boss agreed. For some reasons it felt important to her to be on the case, chase whoever did this to Ellen. Why exactly was something she could think about later. For now the most important thing was to get the killer and make him pay for what he did to Ellen. 

“Somebody sliced her open like a pig you hang up so it bleeds out.” The medical examiner stood next to Sofia and looked at the body. After the blonde called her boss, told him she knew the victim and filled him in, he let her stay. Greg started on the surrounding while Sofia stayed and looked at the body of her ex. The last meeting hadn’t been nice, Ellen had hurt her, had tried everything to make her feel worthless, nevertheless, she didn’t deserve to die.   
“Her organs are all where they belong, aren’t they?”   
“From what I can say after these few seconds, yes. How long have you been staring at the body?”   
“Ten minutes?”  
“You know her?” Cherry could tell the victim wasn’t unknown to the former detective.  
“She’s my ex.”  
“Oh…are you sure you should be here?”  
“Yes. We weren’t friends – not even close – but she doesn’t deserve this. It’s cleared with William. Shall we start?”  
“Ready when you are, CSI Curtis.” Cherry stepped next to the body and kneed down.   
Sofia followed her, took photos. Close ups from the cut, from the organs, the rest of the body. Why kill somebody like this? Why leave her naked on the streets? Who did Ellen piss off? How did she end here?  
“From what I can tell you the killer used a scalpel, started up here at the throat and cut down without stopping. Not very deep, but deadly.”  
“Like he wanted to look inside her.”  
“There are other ways to see the inner beauty of a person, you don't have to kill her.”  
Inner beauty? Did Ellen have inner beauty? As hard as it sounded, Sofia wasn’t sure about it. Ellen looked beautiful from the outside, there was no doubt about that but from the inside? If there was inner beauty, it was well hidden. No, that was mean. There had been times when Ellen was nice, when she did something for Sofia, made her happy. Not often, but it was wrong to say, she had been selfish all the time. Only most times...  
“Her face looks like whoever killed her was angry. Maybe she put up a fight, can’t tell you yet.”   
Sofia took a closer look at the hands. Blood was under the fingernails, was over the hands. It was impossible to say if it was only Ellen’s blood or also some blood of the killer. She’d take samples, Cherry would take some more when she had the body in the morgue.   
“When was the last time you saw her?”  
“I beg your pardon?” The voice of the other woman got into Sofia’s thoughts.   
“When was the last time you saw her?”  
“Five days ago.”  
“Really? You stayed in contact?”  
“No, we met in a club.”  
“Must make it harder for you.”  
“It wasn’t…she wasn’t an easy person and I preferred not to see her. When I met her in a club, she…wasn’t always nice.” It was hard to find some words, that weren't lies and didn't sound too hard.   
“She insulted you and your friends.” Don stepped behind them. “Like she insulted everybody who couldn’t help her reach her goals or wasn’t they way she wanted people. We’re not looking at a nice person, we’re looking at a mean woman, who played and used people. She doesn’t deserve this, we’ll find whoever did this and get him or her into jail, but this woman hurt enough people to have a lot of enemies and we have no reasons to pretend, we're sorry for her death.”  
A part of Sofia wanted to disagree with Don, wanted to defend Ellen, but there were no arguments for her. “She wasn’t nice to me, I was mad with her on Tuesday, but to kill her like this you have to be very mad. I can’t believe she pissed somebody off with words.”  
“We’ll find out. For her and for us.”  
“Who did find her?”  
“Homeless guy over there. I know him and get him to the department later.”  
“Could it be he has her wallet?”  
“Wally? If he does, we won’t find it. Was she a cash or card woman?”  
“Card. She never left her place without her wallet, her ID. Unlike most people she loved her ID photo.”  
“You know where she lives? Lived?”  
“If she hasn’t changed her apartment, yes.”  
“We should go there when you’re done here. What about family? Got a number?”  
“No.” She didn't have any contact with Ellen's family. Once she met them when they were in Los Angeles, they weren't impressed by Sofia and Sofia wasn't impressed by them.   
“Can you give me her birthday and place of birth?”  
“August seventeen seventy-five in Dover, Delaware. Her parents lived there when we were together.”  
“Thanks. I let your work here but you know, you’re a source.”  
“So are you.” Sofia simply said, He knew her too, he had met her various times even they never had a sexual relationship. This wouldn’t be an easy case for any one of them. 

Three hours later came Sofia out of the morgue. When she finished the area around the body she followed Cherry into the morgue to get more evidence from the medical examiner, who had only started with her work. Like Sofia. There was a lot of work waiting for her, including a trip to Ellen’s apartment.   
“Got a second?”   
“Sara!” There was her lover, right in the middle of the department, waiting for her. “I’m sorry, it takes longer, we have a body and…”  
“It’s Ellen.”  
“Yes.” Greg or Don must have told Sara who the victim was.   
“Are you allowed to work her case?”  
“So far, yes. Who told you? Don?”  
“No, Greg. Or Jules when she got his text. Can you have a coffee? Do you want to have a coffee with me?”  
“Yes. To both. Give me a second to get the evidence in the layout room.”  
“Sure. I wait in the break room.” Sara went into the break room. It was seldom that she visited her lover here, came here without telling the blonde before. Work life and private life weren’t mixed up – until this month when everything got mixed up. Now it was the second time within a few days that she came here, met Sofia here.   
When Jules told her about Ellen’s death Sara knew she had to see Sofia. Ex lover or not, they had been together and seeing somebody, you once loved dead in front of you, wasn’t easy. Of course Greg was aware of their relationship, knew the possible problems, but Sara knew her lover, when she wanted the case, there was no way somebody could talk her out of it.   
With two coffees the blonde came back in the room two minutes later. “I’m sorry for this. We had dinner plans.”  
“Knowing that when we have to work anything can pop up and change our plans.”  
“When I work, you don’t come late.”  
“Most times, yes. If you remember, I worked as a CSI too and know how cases mess up your plan.”   
“I could have told them I can’t work the case, she’s my ex.”  
“Nobody had argued with you in that case, everybody would understand it. But it’s not you. She’s your case, you feel responsible for her. No matter how she acted the last time you saw her, no matter how your relationship was the last months.”  
“Did Greg write any details?”  
“No.”  
“Is Jules mad he can’t come home?”  
“Her parents are doctors, I’m sure this isn’t the first time a family dinner had a member less than planed. Sofia, do you want me here? Shall I leave you alone so you can work?” There was something, something Sara couldn’t give a name. Like an invisible wall between them. It made her feel uncom-fortable, scared her a little bit.   
“No, don’t leave.” The blonde moved closer, took the hand of the brunette. “I know I’m kind of strange, it’s…I can’t get this picture out of my head. Her on the ground. The killer… slashed her like a pig in a slaughterhouse. From the throat to the pelvis and fold the skin aside so you can look inside her, like he wanted to present her to us.”  
“Can you handle it? The case? The pictures?”  
“It’s my job.”  
“Honey…”  
“Yes, I can handle it. This time it will be harder, will take longer but I can’t step back. Please don’t ask me to drop the case.”  
“I won’t, of course I won’t ask you to drop the case. Why would I do that?”  
“Because I sacrifice our time for Ellen, a woman, who was very unkind to you, who made you very mad and you never liked her. For her I miss Christmas dinner and will miss the rest of the evening and probably the next days won’t look any different when we can’t solve the case fast.”  
“You do your job, it’s a part of you, you have to get justice to victims. Like I had to right the wrong. Scarifying yourself for the job, for your believe, is a part of you, I love all parts of you.”  
“Even when it means you’ve to be home alone on Christmas Day?”  
“I’m not home alone, there are other people and you’ll come back at one point, come to me, take me in your arms and we’ll be together for a few hours.”  
“Thanks.” For a second Sofia hesitated. She was at work, had to be professional and…oh, well screw being professional, she had a break, could forget the rules for a second. Her arm got around Sara, pulled her in and she kissed her lover softly. Yes, that was medicine, exactly the medicine she needed right now. All the time. The lips of the woman she loved, feeling the soft skin, smelling Sara’s perfume, realizing the feeling of being home with the brunette in her arms.   
“Since when are kisses in the lab allowed? I can’t remember we had something like that in Vegas.” The brunette teased softly, placing a kiss on top of Sofia’s forehead.   
“I’m having a break, in my break time I’m a private person and not a CSI.”  
“You’re always a CSI.”  
“Okay, then I was looking for some evidence.”  
“Evidence?”  
“Sure. Important evidence regarding the question if you love me.”  
“Got the answer you wanted?”  
“I got the truth and that’s what I wanted.”   
“Good. I leave you to your work, go back to Sally and Tony. If you come home before midnight we can go to bed together, if it will be later, you’re working serious overtime and have to kiss me when you back, take me in your arms and be cool with me kissing you tomorrow morning before I leave.”  
“I try to be back sooner. Don and me will drive to Ellen’s apartment and after that I think we call it a day. We’re on the clock since ten hours, another two or three and we might be too tired to work on one hundred percent.”  
“Come back when you’re ready, call me if you need me, if you need to talk or only want to hear my voice. I’ll leave my cell phone switched on.”  
“Thanks. I love you.”  
“Love you too, Sweetheart.” Sara bent forward and kissed Sofia one more time before she got up and left the room. Time for her lover to go back to work. Hopefully more settled than she was before. 

When Sara came back home Jules sat in the living room.   
“Hey, shouldn’t you be with your parents? It’s almost dinner time.”  
“I was waiting for you.”  
“For me? Why?”  
“Eric wants his godmother with him tonight. His father has to stay at work, I carry Jorja, leaves you to carry him and be with him.”  
“Jules, it’s a family dinner, with your and Greg’s parents.”  
“You’re a part of the family, I believe my mother told you so two weeks ago. Come on, there’s no need to stay here alone.”  
“I’m not alone, Sally and Tony are here.”  
“They left half an hour ago when I told them, I’ll take you with me. Some of their friends are having a party. Young people prefer to dance on Christmas than sit around with us oldies and drink a glass of wine.”  
“Shane comes over soon.”  
“We take him with us too.”  
“Jules…” She couldn't just crash the Christmas family party of her friend, that was wrong. Being the godmother of Eric didn't make her a part of the family. Not in a way that makes you a dinner member.   
“Sara, if you don’t want to join us, just say it. It’s okay, but stop looking for excuses. Nobody will be mad when you’re honest.”  
Exhausted Sara closed her eyes. Her plan had been being home with Sofia, have dinner, watch a movie with her, Sally, Tony and Shane, have a glass of wine and go to bed around midnight. A family feast wasn’t on her list.   
“Only when Shane agrees. I promised him we celebrate Christmas together.”  
“He should be here any second.”  
“Yes.”  
“Okay.” Jules petted on the place next to her. “Come here and don’t ask why, like you do most times.”  
“You want to talk with me about Sofia, her new case and how I feel with her investigating Ellen’s death. How I feel about her ex being killed, her missing out time with me when she doesn’t have to work the case, could be here.”  
“Smart ass.”  
“Sorry to know you too well, doctor Weinberg.” Sara smiled a bit. She expected Jules to talk with her about Ellen’s death sooner or later. Now that they had some time alone it would be sooner.   
“How do you feel about Ellen’s death and Sofia working the case?”  
“I didn’t see crime scene photos, but Sofia told me what the killer did to Ellen. No need to pretend I liked her, I couldn’t stand her, you know it and I won’t start saying nice things about her only because she’s dead. She hurt Sofia, she played her, she offended my friends and me. That doesn’t mean she deserved to die.”  
“Ellen stepped on many toes, made many people angry.”  
“Probably. No reason to kill her. Somebody sliced her open, from the throat to the pelvis and opened her up so everybody can look inside her.”  
“Personal. The killer did this for a reason, the act was personal, he tries to tell the world something.”  
“Yeah…to your second question, I expect Sofia to work this case. She knew her, she was her ex and she’s a victim now. No matter if she’s a CSI or a detective, she protects the victims, fights for them. It’s her job, it’s a part of her personality. They sent her to the scene, made her responsible and she took the responsibility. I love her for this and I don’t want her to give away the case to be with me tonight. When you date a cop or a CSI, chances are high your date gets cancelled because of a case. Same with a doctor.”  
“True. So you’re all right?”  
“Yes. I will miss her when we have dinner, look forward to see her back home, that's it. No fights, no nightmares.”  
“Good. If not, you know where to find me, next to your bedroom, with your godchild.” Jules pulled Sara quickly in her arms and kissed her cheek.   
“Talking about my godchild: I think it’s time to get him ready for the trip to his grandparents so we can leave as soon as Shane arrives.”  
“True."  
"I take care of him while you prepare his sister. My little baby …oh…oh!” Sara just realized she hadn’t told Jules about Don’s decision. “I know something nice.”  
“Do you want to share it?”  
“Absolutely. Don agreed on being the father of Sofia’s and my baby…it will be the baby of the three of us. He doesn’t want the custody, but he wants to be involved. Isn’t that great?”  
“Indeed.” Jules hugged Sara. “Your child will be a very lucky child.”  
“They want my ovum so it has a little bit of all three of us… you can imagine that scares me, makes me wonder if it’s a good idea it has my family’s DNA but…Eric seems to trust me and so far nobody told me, I did anything absolutely wrong, maybe I can be a mother, take care of a baby and give it a good life.”  
“I’m sure you can, Sara. You’re capable of loving and caring, the two most important things for a baby. You’ll be a great mother. When does Sofia want to get pregnant?”  
“Late spring. We have no idea if it works out the first time or takes a little bit longer.”  
“You can’t plan it.”  
“Do you think Sofia is physical fit enough for a pregnancy?” Now that they knew who would be the father of their child, her old fear came back. What if the pregnancy wasn't good for Sofia's body?  
“I can’t see a reason why she shouldn’t be pregnant, you can ask my mom about it but her leg shouldn’t be a reason. As far as I remember, you talked about that already. Otherwise you’ve to be the pregnant one.”  
“Me? No! Never!”   
“It’s not that bad…okay you saw me the last weeks, it was painful, but it’s worth the pain. I forgot it as soon as I saw the twins and I’d get through the same pain and more again to have them.”  
“I’m not made to be pregnant.”  
“You’re a woman, you are made to be pregnant.”  
“No. Ask your cousin, she’ll understand me.”  
“Tanya? Don’t take her as a role model.”  
“When it comes to pregnancy Tanya and me share the same point of view. Where is she, by the way?”  
“Upstairs, preparing her Christmas presents. Late as usual.”  
“I like her.” Sara grinned. Jules’s cousin was a woman she liked and understood. Somehow it was a shame this was her last week in the big house but when she really moved out on the first of January, there was nothing Sara could do to stop her. With Jules and the twins still living here, Tanya would visit them frequently. 

“When was the last time you were here?” Don opened the door to Ellen’s apartment.   
“Two years. When Greg came over for the first time we met Ellen on the beach, she talked us into joining her in a club, we did it and I…was frustrated because it seemed impossible to get Sara and needed an ego boost. Quite stupid.”  
“Does she know?”  
“Yes. I felt guilty the next morning. We weren’t a couple, but she had the nightmares and I felt like I left her alone when she needed me. Greg was there, he made sure she was all right, but ...it should have been me.”  
“Like you said, you weren’t a couple.”  
“No.” Nevertheless Sofia felt still guilty when she thought about her behave. After Don she entered the apartment. “She painted her walls, the red is new.” The walls had been yellow the last time Sofia had been here. From the door they came straight into the kitchen. Spotless, white furniture, a few big photos of Ellen in various poses on the beach, with the Hollywood Sign and other places.   
“She was tidy.”  
“No, she had a cleaner.”   
“Oh.” Don opened a door and found himself in the bedroom. A big king size bed held in black and red, red carpet, black wardrobe. A huge wardrobe that covered every free spot of the walls. Only for the door and a panorama window it stopped. From the window you could see the Hollywood Sign.   
“The cleaner doesn’t work in the bedroom.” His eyes fell on a black slip half hidden under the bed.   
“No, never. Her cleaner comes in the morning, most times Ellen wasn’t alone at that time.”  
“Do you see anything that has changed in the last two years?”  
“A few things, the couch is new, some pictures too. There’s a spa in the bathroom and the balcony faces Hollywood.”  
“Did she have any serious relationships after your break-up?”  
“I doubt she ever had a relationship she took seriously. Fun, amusement, possible chances for her career or any other advantages.” Sofia shook her head. She was in the apartment of her ex, her dead ex, and she couldn’t find positive words for her.   
Don stepped behind her, took her in his arms. “Take a minute, Sofia.”  
With closed eyes the blonde leant onto his shoulders. Breathe. She could do this, all she needed a few more seconds to get herself together.   
“We need to find out with whom she spent the last night. According to Cherry Ellen was killed between two and four this morning. There are a few clubs she went to regularly, I gave the names to the officers. We can have a look here. When she planed to meet somebody it might be written down. It sounds ridiculous, but she had a little black book, wrote down with whom she was when and how it was. I found it once while she took a shower and I was in bed.”  
“Where did you find it?”  
“In the nightstand.”  
“Are you okay here? I want to canvass and see if the neighbors can help us with a few details about Ellen’s private life.”  
"Sure, you can go, I have a look around here." Maybe a few minutes alone were good for her. A little bit of time to rethink everything, think about her time with Ellen, the times when she was here. Say goodbye.   
“Usually I should stay with you, make sure you’re safe. The killer could come here too. Let me call an officer.”  
“Don, I’ve a gun, I was a lieutenant.”  
“Now you’re a CSI and there are rules.” He took his cell phone. “Go, have a look for the book while I get us some back-up. I try to call Lynn or Kyle.”  
“Yes, Detective.”   
“Thanks for your cooperation, LT.” He stroke softly over her cheek. “Get used to me being very protective, Sweetheart. From summer on it will be worse.”  
She smiled a bit. From summer on, when she should be pregnant. Of course he would look after her even more then. 

“You are late!” Doctor Bendler said when she opened the door for Sofia. “And you look like crap. Why didn’t you go to bed? The shadows under your eyes tell me you are awake for at least eighteen hours with barely any break. Am I right?”  
“Yes. Do you send me home straight away or am I allowed to see my girlfriend?”  
“Only if you eat some late dinner.”  
“I’m not hungry.”  
“How’s your leg? Shall I check on it?”  
“I take some food and a glass of wine.”  
Doctor Bendler smiled. “Come in, they’re all in the living room. Greg arrived a few minutes ago.”  
“Thanks.”   
Doctor Bendler guided Sofia into the living room, where all the other sat.   
“Hey.” A soft smile appeared on Sara’s face when she saw her lover, but it couldn't cover the sorrow in her eyes. She worried about her lover, about how she felt and how her physical condition was. A long day at work, a victim she was involved with, all things that weren't good for the blonde.   
“Good evening, everybody.” The blonde sat next to her girlfriend, kissed her and put her arm around the brunette’s waist. “And merry Christmas.”  
“Merry Christmas, it’s good to see you here.” Jules said.   
“Thanks. I’m glad I made it. Sorry to be that late.”  
“You’ve a good excuse, which isn’t topic here because it’s a Christmas party.” Doctor Bendler gave Sofia a plate with food. “Eat this, relax, and keep your girlfriend in your arms. No more work today.”  
“Says the one who wanted to examine my leg.”  
“Only to get you exactly where you’re now and have some dinner. Your girlfriend, Sara, didn’t want to eat, told me she isn’t hungry and I bet, she didn’t eat for hours.”  
“You’ll be right on this, Alison. Eat Honey, they have a great dessert, self made Tiramisu and you only get it when you eat the main course. Plus there’s Mouse au chocolate in the fridge. Later you have to distract them and I steal both bowls and we can eat the rest alone at home.”   
“Sounds like a good plan. I called my parents on my way to here, they say hello and Merry Christmas to everybody. Mom is still in the department, that's why dad came along, forced her to have a little break, eat cake and cookies. ”  
“Long working hours are a family problem. We need to call them tomorrow. Where’s Don?”  
“With Kyle.”  
“Tanya called off a date with a doctor to spend time with him. Somebody wasn’t happy about that.” Sara grinned.   
“My niece is over thirty, she shouldn’t waste her time with a computer game.” Doctor Bendler grumbled. “Doctor Seroyn is a really nice man.”  
“You won’t die of a heart attack with him around.“ Jules agreed with her mother.   
“He’s a cardiologist?”   
“No, so boring, you won’t have to fear a heart attack because life is exciting with him. My mom tried to set him and me up too, safe yourself the time, Tanya, you won’t like him. His biggest hobby are his stamps, he has a huge collection. He can talk about them for hours and explains you the value of every single stamp he owns.”  
“Great, can I have some LSD on that date? So I can imagine the stamps in color and have fun while he talks? Sorry auntie, I’m happy with playing video games at the moment. We got this new basketball game, it’s like really playing basketball and we wanted to try it with Sara, Sofia, Kyle and Lynn. As a warm-up for the games outside in spring.”  
“We? You and Don bought something together?” Sofia couldn’t hide a smile. This sounded very interesting.   
“Yes, we thought it’s stupid when we both buy the game, we can buy it together, because we’ll play it together anyway. Kyle has a few games too, we’ll have a long video games night the next time they’ve a day off. You’re invited too, but you’re not really into video games.”  
“When your mother hears you do nothing else the whole day than playing video games…she didn’t like it when you were twelve, she won’t like it now.”  
“The problem is, she can’t do anything against it. I earn my own money and can do what I want. When I start working there won’t be so much time for video games anymore, but my apartment will have a big area only for video games. And I’ll go to the next video games competition. I always wanted to go there, first my parents, then my study and finally my husband were in my way, now there’s nobody who can stop me and I won’t let anybody stop me. Want to join me, Jules?”  
“Uhm, no, thanks. Unless this competition is in an interesting city I want to see. You can play and I spend the day sight-seeing. Honey, do you look after the twins when my crazy cousin I leave for a day or two?”  
“Sure.”  
“Don’t forget to plan a long weekend away for your fiancé and yourself before she has to go back to work.” Sara said. “You deserve a few days to refill your batteries and we’ll look after the twins. They like their beds, are used to sleep in our house and we’re happy to look after them.”   
“Don’t you think it’s the job of the grandparents to look after the twins, Sara?”  
“No Alison, you will get them later anyway. Grandma and grandpa are always the favorite family members of children, leave them to us as long as we have the chance. Plus we need to practice.”  
“Do you?”  
“Yes. When you tell us Sofia is physically fit enough for a pregnancy we’ll give it a try next year; with the best possible father for our baby.”  
“There’re no reasons why Sofia can’t have children when you make her visit her physician as soon as she has a problem. Means, when there’s an infection, you go straight to your doctor and won’t wait until you can barely walk. You share your body with a baby, when you’re body suffers from an infection, so does your baby.”  
“I’ll be more responsible, doc.”   
“Good.”  
“Why didn’t I get this information sooner?” Greg asked. “We were the whole day more or less together and you didn’t say a single word.”  
“We were at work and I wanted to tell you when we’re back home, when we have the time to celebrate. I’m quite sure you’ll be the godfather, Greggo. What do you think, Sara?”  
“I can’t think of a better one.” She bent over and kissed his cheek. She was the godmother of his child, he should be the godfather of her child.   
“Will the baby have your brown eyes or Sofia’s blue eyes?”  
“It will have my brown eyes or Don’s blue eyes.”  
“I knew it. Don will be the father…and you the mother? Sofia the surrogate mother?”  
“Kind of, yes. Don’s and my DNA, Sofia has all the influence over it. If makes it smug you’ve make it a geek later.”  
“She calls me smug all the time, this is not a nice thing to say to your girlfriend and the mother of your child. What will our baby think when you call me smug all the time? Be nicer to me, call me beautiful or wonderful and not smug. I’m not smug. Jules, can’t you make her friendlier with your hocus-pocus?”  
“Sara is nice and you spent too much time with my mother.”  
“I like your hocus-pocus.” Sara blinked at Jules. “Chris Angel is nothing compared to you and your mother is only jealous. Everybody can become a surgeon, but to be one of the best psychologist and therapists in Los Angeles, you need skills you can’t learn. And you’re the best.”  
“Thanks Honey. What do you think of having a coffee and a muffin in our favorite café tomorrow? Without the mean and smug people. Only the two of us.”  
“In your office?”  
“You miss my office?”  
“I like the armchair…do I get an extra hour of therapy when I sit in there?”  
“No, you’ve got your therapist. All you get are friendly advices.”  
“Even better. Finally you tell me what to do and don’t let me figure it out myself, makes things easier.”  
“Ask your girlfriend what to do, she’ll tell you.”   
“Forget Jules and her hocus-pocus and have the muffins with me. In our house. You’re not supposed to have dates with other women.”  
“I don’t date other women, I meet Jules for a muffin. If you’re nice I’ll take a few home for you.” Not that there weren't enough cookies and cakes left, but you could never have too much sweets at home.   
“Why aren’t Greg and me invited too?”  
“We want our privacy.” Sara smirked. “You and Greg can go out for a coffee and muffins too, I don’t mind.”  
“We need a serious conversation about meeting other people before we’ll have our baby. At the moment it sounds like you’ll be out, have fun, while I sit at home, alone, forgotten and fat. That doesn’t make me happy.”  
“You’ll never be alone, forgotten or fat. Our house is full of people, I think of you all the time and you’ll never be fat, you’ll be pregnant and beautiful.” Sara kissed her lover. A pregnant Sofia. In her mind she had a picture of her lover and she looked beautiful. 

26th of December

Carefully Sara embraced her lover from behind and kissed her neck. It was six in the morning, too early for the blonde to be awake and nevertheless she was there, sat in the big kitchen, had a coffee in front of her and some scrambled eggs.   
“Mhm, lovely lips on my body in the early morning, this must be a good day.”  
“I hope so.” Sara knew her lover didn’t have a good night, slept badly. When they went to bed after eleven, the blonde had very soon a nightmare. From what Sara heard it was a mix between the explosion and Ellen’s death. She woke her lover up, who couldn’t remember much of her dream and didn’t want to talk about what she remembered. Not then.   
“I slept better after the nightmare.”  
“Better and still poor.”  
“Have you been awake for a long time?”  
“I woke up a few times and all the times when I was awake, you didn’t sleep relaxed.”  
“There are some pictures I can’t get out of my head. And so many questions. I know, I shouldn’t care so much, should stay professional but…I can’t help it.”  
“I don’t expect you to be ice cold when you see your ex dead on the street. If that was the case I’d worry about you.”  
“For what it’s worth, I try to be back earlier today and when William doesn’t insist on me working tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, I’ll be here with you.”  
“You have a case, a brutal murder case.”  
“True and I’ll give this case another twelve hours today. If we can’t find the killer, there are colleagues, who are very talented and they can work the case as well.” Would she say the same when the victim was somebody else? Did she care less because it was Ellen?   
“Exactly. You’ll take your two days off.” Greg said when he heard the last sentences after he came into the kitchen. “Ellen gets all the help she needs, we’ll get her killer, but you will have your time off. It’s not like you have insider knowledge we need.”  
“No. So don’t worry, we’ll have our Christmas party tomorrow, our days off and I’ll get my head off work." At least that was her plan, lets see what reality did with it. "Does Shane come over for lunch?”  
“Late lunch. We can sleep in, have breakfast in bed and… explain the dogs why we forgot them.”  
“I take them out, don’t worry about them.” Greg offered. “A little walk before work is a good way to wake up.”  
“Thanks. We’ll take your fiancé and twins out for a walk after lunch, the weather is supposed to be good. And your parents can join us too.”  
“They’ll be at the Universal Studios tomorrow, don’t worry about them. It’s time for some sightseeing.”  
“Universal Studios? They’ll be busy the whole day. Are they here for dinner or are you with Jules’s parents again?”  
“No, they’ve to work, we’ll be out for dinner. Or here if that’s okay.”  
“Sure. We’ll have our late Christmas dinner, you can join us. Salad, potatoes and turkey, ice cream as dessert. And a lot of wine.”   
“We’ll be drunk the whole time.” Sara planed to surprise Sofia with a bottle of champagne for breakfast. When they had the chance to stay in bed, be lazy, it was a good chance to celebrate. Maybe she could drink the champagne out of the blonde’s bellybutton. 

Sofia overlooked the evidence. Nothing new. Nightshift didn’t work Ellen’s case, nobody added something. For them it was an ordinary murder case. What was it for her? A murder of her ex, it was…was it personal? Kind of. She knew about her nightmares, she knew she had dreamed about her ex last night, dreamed of them, pictures she had in her mind of them, of the time when they were together, after the break-up. The one night stand two years ago. Ellen hurting her last week. The blonde was sure it was the other woman’s way to handle their separation. Sofia refused to give Ellen another chance, ignored the flirtation. Not many people rejected the model and actress. And when people did, it was very bad for Ellen’s ego and she could be very insulting. Was very insulting and mean.   
“We’ve got a wit…damn, you look like shit!” Don said when he came into the room. “Your night must have been horrible.”  
“It wasn’t nice. We’ve got a witness?”  
“Kind of…are you all right?” He stepped in her personal space.   
“Yes.” She got up. “I…” Before she could continue he pulled her in his arms.  
“Don’t forget to look after yourself.”  
“I do and so does Sara. Who is the witness?”  
“A barkeeper who saw Ellen leaving with a man last night. Since when did she date men?”  
“She dated everybody if this person could help her in any way.”  
“Okay. Do you want to join me in interrogation or shall I ask Greg?”  
“I come with you. Don’t treat me like china.”  
“I worry about you and nothing you say will change that. You’re my friend, I love you.”  
She took his hand to stop him. “I love you too and I promise I let you know when it’s all too much for me. Right now I feel like I’ve to do this, have to close the case to make…to make me feel better. I don’t do it only for her, I do it mostly for myself.”  
“All right. Promise me you’ll talk about how you feel with Sara or me or whoever you feel like talking to. And don’t forget your appointment with your therapist today. That’s important. Now more than ever. Let him know about your new case, how you feel and how much your friends worry.”  
“You sound like William and Greg.”  
“Because we all worry about you.” He let his hand ran softly over her arm.  
"I'm fine. Better than I though I would be, actually. Lets talk to the witness." She followed him into interrogation. A man in his late twenties sat at the table. When she entered the room she knew exactly who he was.   
"Darren."   
"Hello Sofia, what are you doing here?" His green eyes looked surprised at her and for a moment it looked like he was about to get up to greet the blonde.   
"I'm working here...are you our witness?"  
"Yes...I'm sorry...for your loss?"  
"You know Ellen and me weren't together anymore."  
"You know each other?" Don asked surprised.   
"Yeah, it's been a while that I saw Sofia...almost two years? Over two years?"  
"Something like that, yes. Darren worked in a club I was quite often with Ellen. Are you still working there?"  
"No, I changed a few months ago, it's the 'Change' now. An expensive club, quite famous with young actors and producer at the moment. Ellen was there at least once a week."  
"She was there two nights ago?"  
"Yes. I saw her around midnight, she was dancing with a man, let him be in his thirties. I haven't seen him around."  
"Can anybody get into the club? You said it's popular with stars, you must have a few rules about who can come in."  
"We do, you need an invitation. They're given away inside the club, so once you were there, you can get an invitation for the next time. As far as I know a couple of actors bought the club, started the system, now there is a guest list with around hundred names on it, these people can come in whenever they want, the rest has to get the invitations. The more popular you are, the bigger is your chance your name might end up on the list. Ellen's name is on the list, it was put on there from a producer, she worked with. But I'm sure she worked more for his personal pleasure than for his projects. We both know she never had a big part in a movie or a show, but had other qualities."  
"Can you give us the name of the guy?" She needed more, more to get the man. There was a very reliable witness sitting in front of her, she had to get everything she could out of him. That he had a good memory was something she knew. Now it was the time to use this memory for their case.   
"No, they don't write down who put whom on the list, sorry."  
"And the man she was with two nights ago came in with an invitation?"  
"I never saw him before, he must have had an invitation or his name is new on the list. I'm not allowed to give you the names of the people on the list without a warrant, so if you want the list, give me a warrant and I'll send you the list ASAP. Sorry."  
"Not your club, not your rules. Thanks for the information. Tell us more about the man, how did he look? Beside being in his thirties."  
"Tall, six four, six five. Long brown hair, ponytail, slim. Not a good dancer. He wore black pants and a black shirt. There was a tattoo on his left arm, I can't tell you what it was, I was too far away. We do have security cameras, but the tape gets deleted every morning, just after the club closes. By the time you guys asked for her, everything was gone."  
"When we ask a colleague to draw a picture of the man Ellen was with, can you describe him for him? So we have a better imagination for whom we're looking." And could send the photo to all colleagues, airport, port and bus station.   
"Sure. Uhm...we do have guests, who takes photos of them celebrating, maybe when you have the warrant and the list, you can contact them and asked for photos too. My colleagues and I are more than happy to help you out with, who was there. We might not remember everybody, but most of the regulars."  
"That's a good idea...Don?"   
"I get the warrant. It doesn't look like you need me here anyway. Our witness is very cooperative."  
"When it were me, who was killed, I'd like people to help the police to find my killer too."  
"Good spirit." Don got up and left the room.   
"You should come along, Sofia." Darren said. "You might like the music."  
"I don't have famous friends. There are two actors living with me, but they aren't important enough for your club."  
"You know the bartender, he can get you an invitation if you want."   
"Make it two and we have a deal, I want my girlfriend with me. Besides, I can't really dance anymore."  
"What's wrong with your leg? I noticed you don't walk the way you did two years ago."  
"I lost my left leg from beneath the knee. The Hollywood and Highland explosion last year."  
"Shit. I'm sorry."  
"It's getting better. Uhm...can you remember anything else about the night? About Ellen and her company? Did he dance with somebody else? What drinks did he order?"  
"He sat at the other side of the bar, I wasn't responsible for him, it looked like he ordered coke with whiskey or rum. When I recall the glass correctly. Ask Billy, he worked there. As far as I remember he danced only with Ellen. No idea if they met at the bar the dance floor. Sorry."  
"You gave us a lot of information, Darren. I'll go and ask for a colleague so you can work with him on the identikit picture."  
"Okay. And you come along soon? I write your name on the list and make a note, you'll be there with company."  
"We'll do that. If we have more question, I'll contact you. I've your phone number now." She smiled.   
"Sofia, one word two years ago and you had gotten it sooner." He smiled softly at her. "Go and get whoever did this to Ellen. She wasn't a saint but she didn't deserve to die."  
"No, she didn't." Sofia got up and walked out of the room.   
***  
"Did you hear anything new from Sofia?" Jules sat down in her armchair. It felt strange to be back in her office, to sit where she sat all day until two months ago. In five weeks she'd work here again, see her patients again while her twins were down the road in day care. At the moment she couldn't imagine to make it through the day without them.   
"They have a witness, who saw Ellen with a man in his thirties. Right now the witness is working with a police artist on a picture. Hopefully it will help them to catch the killer." Sara pulled her legs under her body and sipped on her coffee. This had been her favorite position when she was Jules's client.   
"Sounds like a good start."  
"It is. As soon as you have a picture, you have a pretty good chance to catch the person. Most times. The baby kidnapper is still on the loose, but I'm afraid he's not an ordinary criminal. There's a system behind him and they know how to let people vanish." Sara wasn't sure if the man was alive anymore. He was a threat to his friends - or employer - and might be dead already and his body wasn't found.  
"No more babies were kidnapped, that's good but you should stay with us a little bit longer."  
"Because you want your godchild around."  
"My godchild, his sister and his parents. I like the whole family."  
"The whole family loves you too." Jules smiled.   
"Thanks. You know, I talked to my therapist recently and we decided, I'll have one more session and then my therapy is over. I'm fine, I managed to talk to my brother, sent him away and was fine afterwards. After two years it's time for me to live my life on my own. Doctor Luria knows I'm in good hands, being a friend of you, and when I need a therapist again, or only one or two sessions, I can call her and we arrange some-thing." Sara was glad she finally made it. Therapy time was over and it felt good and right.   
"Really?" Jules was surprised.   
"Yes. These two years were necessary but now it's a good time to stop. I'm fine, there are no nightmares and...I'm responsible enough to ask for help in case I need some. Psychotherapy isn't a nonsense to me anymore, I know it helps and it helped me enough to live without it. You and your cousin did an amazing job."  
"Actually you were the one who worked, we only supervised and accompanied you. No more therapy. I'm proud you ended it when you were ready and not before."  
"There were a few moments when I wanted to end it - as you know."  
"Quite normal, most people want to end their therapy before it's over. It's not always easy to see the progress you made."  
"I live without nightmares, the thought of seeing my brother doesn't irritates me anymore, my relationship is supportive, I've a circle of good friends and a job I like. There's a lot of happi-ness in my life and even when dark clouds appear, they never win against the blue sky and the sunshine." Sara put her hand on Jules's. "You are one ray of sunshine. Can I come here for coffee and muffins every now and then? Like when I get the twins from daycare and we meet you here after work?"  
"Sara, you're always welcome here."  
"Thanks. I might need a place to hide when Sofia is pregnant and has mood swings. As her partner it will all be my fault."  
"Did Greg say so?"  
"No and if he did, I wouldn't tell you."   
"Are you on his side?"  
"I'm on the side that makes the two of you happy."  
"Very good, keep yourself out of trouble. What do Sofia's parents say about the grandchildren plan? Don as the father."  
"They'll love the idea and hopefully move to Los Angeles. When Ellen's case is closed we have more time to talk to them. Or we do it tomorrow, Sofia wants her two days off, no matter if the case is closed or not. Do you think she would do the same when the victim wasn't her ex?"  
"Yes. She isn't less motivated because it's Ellen, quite contrary, she wants to find the killer of her ex, it will give her some inner peace. But she needs two days off with you, to rest, to be with you. Greg will continue on the case, she knows it's not forgotten. So will Don. They will give the case some extra time because of Sofia."  
"While she is with me."  
"Exactly where she belongs. The last weeks were very busy for her, she needs her rest and I'm glad she understood that and plans to stay at home tomorrow."  
"We're both workaholics...which isn't always good."  
"You don't overwork yourself anymore. Sure, there are days when you work longer hours, but normally you have your eight hours and go home. Plus you enjoy your job, it doesn't tire you out. You're not surrounded by death and depressing moments, you're in the forest and it's good for you. Although I'm sure you're still a great CSI and my fiancé dreams of working with you again."  
Sara laughed. "Tell him this dream won't come true. He has to dream of something different. His family for example."  
"We're reality, no need to dream of us. Come on, we finished muffins and coffee, time to go back. The mother in me wants to see her babies."  
"And I want to take my godchild out for a walk. Want to join me with Jorja?"  
"Sure." Jules got up. For today she spent enough time in her office. Soon enough this would be the place where she was the whole day. Without her babies. Lucky for her, there were a few more weeks before she had to go back to work. 

Sofia looked at the picture in front of her. This was the man, who was last seen with Ellen. From the picture the blonde was sure, this man could be interesting for her ex; especially when he had the right occupation. A minute ago she got the picture and with her all other cops in Los Angeles.   
"What do you think?" Don sat next to her. She was in the lab, used the facial recognition program to get a name to the picture. Because it wasn't a photo, it wasn't likely to get the right person, but it was worth a try.   
"I think he looks like Ellen might be interested in him. Kayla did a good job with the pic."  
"Your friend was a good witness. How good do you know him?"  
"Darren? He was the bartender in a club I went to a few times when I dated Ellen. A nice guy, a little bit flirty, just like a bartender should be so you buy more drinks."  
"He was very helpful."  
"Yes."  
"And he put you on the special list."  
"For his club, yeah. Are you suggesting he tried to buy me?"  
"No, I wonder if he hit on you."  
"Years ago already. Never serious. Stop acting like he wants something bad."  
"Sorry. Are you done with your work?"  
"Kind of. There is no more evidence I can work on..."  
"Good. It's time for your therapy."  
"Don..."  
"No, you promised your girlfriend you'll take care of yourself. This is a part of it. Go to therapy, talk about your case and go home."  
"We might get the man..."  
"Yes, we will get him and when we do, there will be somebody to work the case. Leave your phone on if it makes you happy, but go now. We are capable of closing a case without you. Remember the time when you were a cop? You didn't need the CSI to close a case when your CSI did a good before and gave you all the evidence you need. You did a good job, we can continue without you. Enjoy your two days off, you earned them and you need them. For yourself and your relationship. Sara is understanding, won't complain, but she looks forward to spend some time with you, be with you. Don't disappoint her. Be there. Go to therapy and invite your girlfriend to dinner, surprise her with a nice start into your mini vacation."  
Sofia sighed. She knew Don was right. It was important to see her therapist and she should go home afterwards and spend some time with Sara. 

"That was a nice idea." Sara smiled when she sat down at the table. She and Sofia were in a restaurant in West Hollywood. "Dinner together, only the two of us, a good start in our mini vacation."  
"Yeah." Sofia took the hand of her lover while her knee found the knee of the brunette under the table. "I don't deserve the whole credit, Don sent me home, told me to ask you out for dinner. The CSI was done with her work, the cop inside me wanted to stay around, find out of the killer was found soon. Or even better, drive around the city and look for the killer. So don't praise your girlfriend when she doesn't deserve it." The blonde felt guilty for pretending being a good lover when she wasn't. In fact, she was a poor show. Sara deserved a lover, who wanted to be with her, more than being at work.   
"My little workaholic. Did you see your therapist?"  
"Yes."  
"Good. And I'm not mad because you needed Don to send you here. If I were in your shoes, it had been the same. We both want to close our cases, stay in the lab until the case is closed. Fact is, cases get closed without you, like they were closed without me. You closed a couple of cases without me and you made a good job. Don or any other cop can do the same. They won't look as good as you do when they do it, but they're capable of doing their job."  
"I know and it shouldn't be personal....but it is."  
"Honey, she was your ex, of course it's personal. If you could handle her murder like any other case I'd wonder if you ever really cared for her."  
"I did...but she doesn't deserve that I stay in the lab instead of being with you."  
"Does her killer deserve that you do everything to get him off the streets?" Sara asked.   
"Yes. Every killer does. I see your point, you spend too much time with Jules, you start to sound like a therapist."  
"We had a lovely afternoon together, I told her I'll quit therapy and she was fine with it."  
"You quit therapy?" That was new to Sofia.   
"Yes. I'm fine. Sending my brother away was my final test, it worked out good, no problems and after one more session in January I go back to handle my life alone. Doctor Luria offered me to call her whenever I need her support and I promised I'll do it. Psychotherapy isn't a waste of time for me anymore. Don't get the idea you can quit too, you need some more time, Honey."  
"How do you know?"  
"I hear your nightmares." Sara smiled softly. "What did he say about Ellen?"  
"He wanted to know how I feel and when I said, I don't suffer because she's dead, he didn't believe me. So I rephrased my comment, told him, I can handle her death, she doesn't deserve it and I will do everything I can to get her killer off the streets. Not only for her but for the safety of all other people. Again, he didn't believe me completely and wants to see me next week again."  
"It matters to you more than it does when the victim is somebody you don't know."  
"Yeah...it shouldn't." It was like Ellen had still some power over Sofia and she didn't like the thought of this.   
"It's normal." The brunette stopped when the waiter came to their table.   
"Did you decide?"   
"I'd like to have the salad with tofu and for her the steak with the steakhouse fries. We take a mineral water and a lager for drinks. Thanks."   
"Very well." The waiter left.  
"You ordered for me without asking me what I want." Sofia said puzzled.   
"So what? Was I wrong with your order?"  
"No...you ordered exactly what I wanted...gosh...I'm an open book for you."  
"You are. I love you, I pay attention to what you like and this place has good steaks. Most times you order a steak and you like the steakhouse fries."  
"Like I said, you spend too much time with shrinks. Stop read-ing me, I feel...predicable."  
"You are. For me. Like I am for you. We love each other, we tell each other our secrets, of course the other one knows almost everything."  
"Doesn't a woman has to be mysterious to be interesting?"  
"No, she has to be lovable and you're adorable, which is better. If I want a mystery, I watch a thriller or read a book. When I want to be love and love somebody, I choose you."  
"Love you too." Sofia blew her lover a kiss. This was why she should be with Sara and not in the lab, her girlfriend was wonderful and no case nor job could hold the candle to her. What an amazing woman. And she, Sofia, was the lucky one, the chosen one. Somebody had looked after her big time when Sara was in the department and Sofia saw her name on the suspect list.   
"Do you have any plans for our next two days? Anything you want to do?"  
"Make love to you. A couple of times a day. Start by sex in the morning, going over to breakfast in bed, more sex, a walk with the dogs, back to our room, lunch, room, walk, room, dinner, room, walk, room. Does this sound boring to you?"  
"No, not all." The blonde grinned. "It sounds like a plan I like. Can we add some time in the room to the list?"  
"I'm sure we can."   
"And kisses for the time we're not in the room?"  
"Absolutely."  
"Sounds like a plan I can imagine for every day...how are the conditions for unemployed people? Can we survive staying at home and have sex all day?"  
"Honey, we need our jobs. Not as much as we need each other but we do need them."  
"Yeah...and we need to see my parents in Vegas soon. Do you think you can manage to get three days off in January?"  
"I'm sure I can. What about you?"  
"When I look at the overtime I worked the last weeks, I can take more than three days off. Maybe in two weeks, everybody will be back from their Christmas holidays."  
"I'll have a look when I'm back. We need to get a breakfast with our old team in the schedule too."  
"Breakfast with your ex?"  
"Jealous?"  
"Maybe...no, I'm fine. We'll meet them, I miss them too. Unfortunately we can't take Greg with us...we can invite them to Los Angeles for February. If Greg agrees, they can sleep at our and their place."  
"Sounds like a good idea." Sara liked the idea to have her old colleagues here, even when this plan hard to realize. Some of them had to work, they couldn't all come to Los Angeles and for a daytrip the distance was too big.   
Sofia cell phone rang. With an apologetic look she looked at it and took the call. "Hey Don, if you want to check on me, I can give you Sara and she'll tell you where we are. I'm not in the lab, I did exactly what you told me to do."  
"Glad to hear that. I don't call to check on you, I want to let you know, we have a man in custody, who looks like the man your friend the bartender saw. Officers picked him up ten minutes ago in Beverly Hills and they're on their way to get him to the department."  
"Really? I..." She wanted to say, she was on her way when her eyes fell on Sara. No, she was with her lover at a dinner date. A date she organized because she had been away so much the last weeks. It was supposed to be her and Sara's evening, their two days off. "Let me know what you find out, will you?"  
"I will. Talk to you later, LT."  
Sofia closed her cell phone and took a deep breath. "They have the man, who might be the killer. Police picked him up in Beverly Hills, he looks like the man on the picture Kayla made with our witness."  
"You want to go back to the department and talk to him." The brunette didn't ask, she saw Sofia wanted to be there, was anxious about if the man was their killer. And wanted an answer to the question why he did it.   
"No...we have dinner...I'm two days off...I should switch my phone off..."  
"Sofia, I can see you want to be there. It's okay."  
"No, it's not. This is our evening." Even her protest sounded weak. Weak like she was. A weak woman, who put her work over her love life. She didn't deserve Sara.   
"Why don't we order our food to go? By the time it's fixed they have booked the man and he's ready in interrogation, we'll be there in time and you can talk to him."  
"Sara...I invited you to here because I want to spend quality time with you, away from work."  
"You won't be able to do this until you haven't closed the case. It will be on your mind, you'll have a lot of questions unanswered. He's the only one who can answer all these questions, can make you close the case for yourself. Without your answers you won't be off the case. I rather go with you to the department for another two hours or so, let you get all the answers and go home with you afterwards, knowing your mind is with me and not the case." Sara took Sofia's hand. "It's okay. We can go there and eat later. Or while we wait until he's ready."  
"What kind of date is that?"  
"A law enforcement date. Come on, when you don't tell them we want our food in a doggy bag, I do it."  
"Are you sure?"  
"Absolutely."  
"Thanks." Relieved Sofia got up and went to the waiter. Time to order their meal to go and go to the department. And later she had to make up to her lover. Big time. Very big time. 

"Why am I not surprised you're here?" Don asked when he saw Sofia. "I shouldn't have called you. Sorry Sara to ruin your night out."  
"Don't worry, I offered her to come here. There's no way we can keep her away from interrogation, not her mind at least. And if you hadn't called her, she would be very, very mad. You did the right thing, Don." Sara turned to Sofia. "Why don't you go with your detective and talk to the suspect while I make myself comfortable in the waiting area?"  
"The coffee there is horrible - as you know. Take the break room, Greg has his coffee hidden there and the cold drinks machine is always stocked. Eat your dinner, there's no need for you to be hungry and wait for me."  
"We both had a Snickers on our way to here, we can both wait until you're done and continue our dinner together. On our balcony, after a walk with the dogs." The brunette blinked at her lover. "And now go and get the guy."  
"I will. Thanks." The look Sofia sent the brunette said more than the words she just said. She was grateful for her understanding lover and there were no words to explain how much she loved Sara. And if there weren't too many people around, she'd pull her lover into her arms and kiss her. Another thing that had to wait until they were home.   
"Okay, tell me about the suspect in custody."  
"Herman Shadner, age thirty seven, from Glendale. He's an unemployed actor, who likes to pretend he is somebody important of the show business. We checked everything he gave us, all lies. Oh, and the CIA is after him, they want him to work for them because he can fit in everywhere."  
"Really? Sounds..."  
"Like he's nuts? Yeah. We ordered the department shrink to watch us talking to him. He has no medical record, but a sealed juvenile file. I try to get it open, so far the judge isn't cooper-ative. We need more than a possibility."  
"We get the judge more if he's the killer."  
"If he's the killer we won't let him walk." Don opened the door to interrogation for Sofia. At the table in the middle of the room was Herman Shadner. When he lifted his head, Sofia saw, he looked exactly like the man on the identikit picture. Kayla and Darren did an amazing job.   
"Mister Shadner, I'm detective Flack, this is CSI Curtis." Don greeted the man, sat down and waited until Sofia sat down too. "You know why you're here."  
"You...you work for the CIA! They want me in their special secret project. Tell them, they can't have me, I'm an actor. A good one."  
"The projects you named, nobody knows anything about you. You're not listed as an actor."  
"Because I don't want the CIA find me. It's like...I'm a secret service agent. I need to stay out of sight."  
"Are you working on any movie at the moment."  
Shadner nodded, bent over the table and whispered. "I'm working as a doctor, a beauty doctor. My job is it to find the secret of beauty. Real inner beauty."  
"Sounds like a fantasy."  
"No! It's a documentary. They film me all the time."  
"Who films you?"   
"NLATV. They've their cameras everywhere." Carefully Shadner pointed over his shoulder to the security camera. "This is one of them."  
"That's the police camera, it's there for your and our security."   
The smiled mildly like he had to talk to a child. "Of course. So you're a detective?"  
"Yes."  
"What was your last role?"   
"I'm a real detective, not an actor."  
"Of course, I'm a real doctor too." He blinked at Don. "And you?" He looked at Sofia. "Now, you look like you were a model before. I bet they have you here for the audience. Didn't we work together last year?"  
"I'm a CSI and not an actress." Sofia responded calm. "Since when does NLATV follow you?"  
"A long time, I'm their star."  
"You seem to have a headache, do you want a pill?"  
"No!" He jumped up like he was threaten by somebody. Immediately the officer in the room pushed him back down on his chair. "I don't take pills anymore!"  
"Okay. What do you mean with anymore? Did somebody force you to take some?"  
"They told me, it's part of my role, I've to play an ill man and need to take these pills. Placebo, they promised but they made ...they made strange things with my head." Shadner's voice was a little bit whiny now, like a child, that had to go to bed. The anger was gone within a few seconds.   
"Not a good movie, I guess."  
"No. Crap."  
"What about her?" She placed a photo of Ellen on the table. "Did you ever play with her? She's an actress." Before the man could reach for the photo it was written all over his face, he recognized Ellen.   
"So beautiful from the outside." Softly the man stroke the photo. "A real beauty. But from the inside just ordinary."  
"How do you know? You can't look into a person."   
"I had a look, like I said, I'm looking for real beauty. She...I thought she was the one...but she is nothing special. Like all the others."  
Sofia looked for a second at Don. He had a look inside Ellen? And she was like all the others? Were there more victims? "How can you look inside a person, doctor?"   
"You open them. It's not that difficult, as a doctor it's easy. You open her, look for the inner beauty."  
"How does the inner beauty look like?"  
"When you see it, you will know. She." His finger tipped on the photo. "Had no inner beauty. Only organs and blood, bled like a pig...I played a butcher once and the pigs didn't look so different from her or the others."  
"So in order to find inner beauty, which is your job, you cut her open two nights ago?"  
"Yes. What a disappointing night."  
"Where did you find her?"  
"She was at this club for actors, she was the star there and the only one who wanted to be a successful star like I am. We talked, we danced and then I told her, I can make sure her inner beauty will be seen by everybody. Unfortunately there was no inner beauty, so I left what she had for the world to see."  
"You sliced her open like a pig." Sofia had to fight to stay calm. This man told her about the murder like he talked about a script. Like he didn't end a life of a human being.   
"She had the inner beauty of a pig."  
"She was a human and you murdered her."  
"No, I don't play a killer, I'm a doctor. Read the script."  
"There is no script." The blonde got up. "We heard enough."  
"We did." Don got up too. "You will play a prisoner for the rest of your life, Mister Shadner."  
"First I have to finish this project, after that you can call my agent for new offers. I'd like to go now, the CIA might be here soon."  
"You will stay here."   
"No, I won't." Mister Shadner got up. When the officer grabbed his shoulder, the man turned and punched him into the face. Immediately Don was with his colleague and together they managed to wrestle the man down, cuffed his hands and feet.   
"Get our doctor in here, he's nuts. And then lock him up, he's under arrest for the murder of Ellen Gable. And for assaulting an officer." Don held his head for a moment. His left eye made contact with the fist of the man before he had cuffed him. Painful and annoying.   
"Sorry, I should have..." Sofia started.  
"No, you're the CSI, you're not supposed to stop suspects, that's what the cops are for. Come on, our job is done. We can have a look at Greg, he took the clothes of this guy and we need to find out his address. I bet we'll find a scalpel with Ellen's blood on it."  
"You will find it, for me, this is the end. We have the killer, Greg and you can wrap up the case. We do have a confession, we don't need the rest, but it would be good to have it, just in case. But that's your call. I will go into the break room, see my girlfriend and take her and her dinner home. I let her wait long enough. The next two days are my days off. You need to finish without me, detective."  
"We will. Good call, LT." Don squeezed Sofia's hand for a second. "You did a great job. Acting like was a doctor, playing his game."  
"He suffers from hallucinations. To make him talk, I had to get into the movie in his head. My bet is, he's off the meds, or never took any meds, and went crazy. Our doc will know what to do." Sofia smiled at doctor Luria, who came out of the observation room and heard the last words.   
"I have an idea about what he has. Good job, Sofia."  
"Thanks. Make sure you have at least two officers with you when you talk to him."  
"I will."  
"And now it's time for the nice sides of life. I see you later, Don."  
"Yeah. Have a nice evening - what's left of it."  
"We will." Sofia smiled and walked to the break room. Time to get out of here with Sara and start their vacation. As soon as she was with her lover, she'd switch off her cell phone and wouldn't answer the landline. The next two days L.A. had to fight without her. 

27th of December

The soft sunlight came through the curtains and gave the room a slightly golden look and made Sofia's hair shine. With a smile on her face, her head on the shoulder of her naked lover, the blonde was sure, this was a good way to start into a new day.   
"This was the first sex of the day, you are aware, I will pull you a couple of time more into bed during the day."  
"Honey, you won't leave the bed before we didn't have sex again." Sara handed the opened bottle of champagne to her girlfriend. This was why she bought the little fridge for their bedroom. How convenient it was to have a fridge with cold drinks right beside your bed. Okay, a fridge looked a little bit different than a nightstand, but who cared about that?   
"Lucky for us we don't have to hurry, Greg took the dogs out, we can stay here a little bit longer, finish this bottle, try to find a spot on our bodies we haven't kissed yet and have another nap. I bet when we finish the bottle I'll be exhausted."  
"Because of the alcohol or because of me?" Sara asked coy.   
"Both." With closed eyes she savored the taste of the cham-pagne, how the cold liquid ran slowly down her throat. Usually she was the beer type of woman, but today champagne seemed to be the perfect pick. After their late dinner yesterday, on the balcony with candle light and having Sara as her dessert, being Sara's dessert, this was the perfect way to continue their little vacation. Okay, there was no ocean in front of their door, but the view on the reservoir in the sunshine wasn't too bad and when they felt like seeing the ocean, all they had to do was getting into the car. Maybe not after their champagne breakfast, today they should only take the bus.   
"How long do you think we can hide here?"  
"It's only eight in the morning, they will give us a little bit more time. All phones are switched off, so the only people, who can disturb us, are our housemates. Don, Sally and Tony are out at work, Jules will be busy with the twins, Tanya helps her, they should have other things on their mind than us. Scooby and Rantanplan might want to join us at one point."  
"No dogs in the bed!"   
"They are our babies. Will you send our baby out of the bed when it wants to be here? Has a bad dream and needs the mommies."  
"Our baby is a human, there's a difference, Dear. I love your dogs as much as you do, but they don't belong in our bed. Not unless we have the bedcover on."  
"You can be so mean. Our poor babies. But this morning they need to stay out of bed, I want it for us alone. We deserve some quality time after the last weeks and I really hope we're through the biggest trouble. I'd like to have a few weeks of ordinary work - as far as it's possible in our jobs - and have an ordinary life again. No baby kidnapper, who have an eye on my friend's babies and no killer, who thinks my ex is a pig and slices her open."  
"To see her inner beauty." Sara shook her head. Sofia had told her what happened in interrogation, what the killer said. To Sara it sounded a little bit familiar and she was sure, doctor Luria would come to the same conclusion she came to. Schizophrenia.   
"It sounds mean but Ellen had no inner beauty. I thought about our relationship a couple of times since I saw her dead on the street, tried to figure out why we were a couple. She could be very charming and convincing, when she wanted you, you were hers. I've no idea how she did it, but I wasn't able to resist. She made me feel beautiful, important, sexy, adorable and then she let me suffer because I did something I wasn't supposed to do. Within seconds you felt guilty and wanted to make it up to her, even when you hadn't done anything. I think she was a great manipulator and I was her victim, was a happy victim for a while before I realized, what was going on."  
"You fell for her, she pretended to be what you were looking for. You're not the first and not the last person, who was played. Happened to me a couple of times too." For a second the brunette thought of Hank, who used her to cheat on his girlfriend. Stupid man and stupid her for not realizing what he did. And why did she date him at all? Only to make Grissom jealous, who didn't seem to care.   
"Process of learning. A painful way of learning. I'm glad I'm with you."  
"You never know in which way I play you." Sara teased.   
"You tease me, you don't play me. Only when it comes to housewife duty you try to play me. It's your turn to clean the room this week and I won't let you get away with not doing it."  
"Really?"  
"Really."  
"Okay, then I will leave the bed and start my cleaning duty. No more sex, no more snuggling, I'm devoted to my broom. See you later, darling." Before Sara could push away her blanket she was pulled into Sofia's arms and found herself pinned under the blonde.   
"You will stay in bed until I'm done with you. You're my sex slave today, everything else has to wait. Understand me?"  
"I thought I'm supposed to clean the room."  
"In two days, yes. Not today, not tomorrow. The next forty-eight hours all your duties are in bed, are satisfying me. Several times a day. Am I clear? Or do I have to get my old handcuffs and cuff you to the bed?"  
"A little game with your cuffs? Sounds very....arousing...yeah Honey, get them. I'm sure you can show me what you want to do with them, how to use them in the most satisfying way." Sara's hand found its way under Sofia's shirt and stroke the blonde's nipple. Why not see what her lover could do with the cuffs? 

"Wow, they really made it out of bed. I thought you'll stay in there forever." Tanya said when Sara and Sofia came into the living room. "Are you bored upstairs?"  
"No, we need a little break, there's only a certain amount of multiple orgasm you can handle on one morning." Sofia shot back dryly.   
"Multiple orgasm? Maybe I need to switch to women too. Can't remember the last time I had multiple orgasm with a man...you don't know any good woman, who is single?"  
"I know a few women, who are single."  
"We should go out and meet them."  
"You turned gay?" Jules came into the room.   
"It's worth a try. And what I heard sounded promising. I'm sure you have a disorder name for it but I don't need to know it."  
"Homosexuality isn't a disorder anymore. My colleagues woke up a couple of years ago. In your case we can settle with a F66.1 or any other number, I'm sure I can match a few when it comes to you."  
"You're not a nice cousin, we won't take you with us."  
"That's fine with me, I don't need a new lover, I'm happy with my fiancé."  
"And where are your twins?" Sara asked.   
"Asleep in their room. They want to spend an hour or so with their godmothers later, so that their mother can catch an hour of sleep after a night full with cries. If you can fit your godchild between food and Sofia."  
"I take Sofia with me for a walk, we have two dogs, they need a walk too. Why don't we prepare some lunch, eat in the garden and afterwards have a walk around the reservoir?"  
"Sounds like a good idea. Let me prepare it." Sofia kissed Sara and went into the kitchen.   
"She satisfies you, she cooks for you, she agrees on everything you say, I want exactly the same! I want somebody who loves me, adores me, does everything for me...and when I think about it, I think I want a man...one with good equipment."  
"Who shares your interests, looks gorgeous, gives you all the freedom you want." Sara added to the list.   
"Yes! Do I ask for too much?"  
"You do."   
"Bugger. How did you get Sofia?"  
"I was arrested and Sofia saved my innocent ass. My heroine."  
"Aah, so sweet. Maybe I need a cop, a hero."  
"I know who's single, he likes video games, is a wonderful man." Sara grinned.   
"He's a bad sport when he loses."  
"He's a man."  
"True. And sexy. Especially when he loses."  
"You should ask him out for a date...and let him win."  
"The date is okay, but I won't let him win! No way!"  
"Okay, send him a text, tell him you're looking for a billiard buddy for tonight. He's a really good player, he'll agree on that."  
"I suck when it comes to billiard."  
"Perfect for his male ego."  
"And the best reason for my payback when he sits on my chair in the office...are you scared of the moment when you will sit there?"  
"No, I'm sure you're a good dentist. Jules trusts you and I trust her."  
"She's not your therapist anymore."  
"No, one more session and I'm free of therapy."  
"Really? That's good. You got rid off Amanda? How did you do that? Garlic? A wooden...."  
"Tanya!" Jules stopped her cousin and looked angry at her.  
"Sorry."  
"You don't like your cousin?"  
"Uhm...we don't agree on many things."  
"Don't let her talk you into not liking Amanda, Sara. Don't listen to her."  
"You can't stand her." Sara concluded amused.   
"She might be...no she is a good therapist, I don't doubt it but... she's too much a therapist for me. Sorry, I can't handle shrinks ...Jules is okay, I love her, but Amanda...we don't go along very good."  
"I thought so, you never joined Jules when she went to see her."  
"No."  
"Don't worry Jules, I like my shrink, she's the second best choice. The fact that Tanya doesn't like her doesn't irritates me. You can't like everybody and just because somebody is family, it doesn't mean this person is nice. My brother is a good example."  
"For what? Sofia came with two plates from the kitchen. Steaming pasta and a tomato sauce with sprinkled cheese. "Fast and yummy food, sorry, we'll get the healthy stuff later." She put the plate in front of Sara.   
"We will, Greg's parents come over for dinner, we need to cook something special."  
"Greg or me should prepare dinner." Jules said.   
"No you have enough work with the twins. I sent Shane a text, he'll meet us in one hour at the dog park, with his special steaks."  
"Oh yeah, right, I forgot them. Perfect. Jules, can you get our babies ready so we can start after lunch?"  
"Sure. Come on, good for nothing cousin. Do something useful."  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Tanya got up and followed Jules.   
"What did she do to be in trouble?" Sofia asked when they were alone.  
"Told me she doesn't like her cousin, who is my shrink. Jules must fear that I won't see doctor Luria anymore when I hear something bad about her. Not that it had changed my mind, like I said, she's the second best and the best isn't available anymore ...not as a therapist."  
"She's your friend, even better."  
"Yes. Okay, our plans for tonight. We do have enough frozen mixed vegetables in the freezer for all of us, Shane has the meat, all we need are the potatoes, we can throw them into the oven and they can bake themselves. Less work, very tasty."  
"When you turn domestic, you're really sexy." Sofia purred.   
"Keep that in mind for later, we don't have time for sex now. Unfortunately. First the dogs and twins, meeting Shane, spend time with our friends, dinner and later we can continue where we stopped this morning."  
"I liked the plan we had this morning more...with all the sex ...guess I knew them already, it was only wishful thinking." Sofia sighed. She really liked her friends and liked to have parties in her house but...sex with Sara was better.   
"I do have another bottle of champagne for tomorrow, when we find somebody to take out the dogs, we can start tomorrow the same way we did today."   
"Sounds like a good start. And no meeting with other people for tomorrow! Only us, the dogs for a walk and we go back to our room. Lets be anti-social and ignore them all."  
"I'm sure nobody is mad when we take some time for ourselves." Sara pulled Sofia in her arms and kissed her. "I love you."  
"Love you more, Sweetheart." Maybe it wasn't that bad to have all the people here later. Sara would be by her side the whole time, she could kiss her, hold her hand and pull her on her lap. And when they excused themselves around ten, nobody would tell them to stay up. 

"You know, this is a good training." Sara closed the last button of Eric's romper suit, placed a kiss on the belly of the boy and smiled when he sent her a smile. Or smiled for whatever reason, she wanted to believe, he smiled at her. He was changed and ready to go to bed.   
"And we passed it summa cum laude." Sofia finished Jorja's romper suit. Two freshly changed babies, both not crying, apparently happy and a little bit tired as the girl in front of her just yawned.   
"Of course we did." Sara lifted Eric and held him in her arms, watched him grabbing at something invisible in the air. "Oh, you are so cute, my little boy. Who is a my little boy? Eric is my little boy. Come on, give me a little smile."  
"I give you a kiss when you ask me nicely." The blonde offered.   
"Maybe Eric wants to kiss me. Do you want to kiss me, Eric?" Sara kissed the boy.   
"You know, I could become jealous."  
"Why would you? You're way too happy seeing me happy with him, shows you, I am capable of handling babies, which is very good when we have our baby. Auntie Sofia and me will have a baby too, a playmate for you and Jorja. Our baby will be younger, so you and your sister have to take care of him or her."  
"And you have to fit in some time for your godchild when you take care of our child. When we have to look after all three." Sofia lifted Jorja up. "Time to go to bed. You kissed your mommy and daddy good night, smiled at your grandparents and now we will take you into your lovely beds." Sofia and Sara offered to take the babies to bed on their way to their own bed. It was after ten, time for the twins to go back to bed and time for them to have some time alone. In the living room were still a lot of people. next to Greg and Jules were Greg's parents, Shane, Tony and Sally. Don and Tanya had excused themselves - or were sent away after arguing who was the better video game player - to have a fight on the basketball field; on the TV screen.   
"Oh look, your teddy bear waited for two hours for you to come back. He will look after you until your parents come back." Sofia placed Jorja in her bed.   
"Or you make sure your sister is fine." Sara stroke softly over Eric's cheek. "And when the sexy blonde CSI and I need you, we'll call you."  
"He isn't a cop."  
"Maybe he'll become one. Or a ranger? Ranger take care of people too."  
"Or a doctor or a CSI. They are both so cute in their dresses." Sofia checked on both babies again before she switched on the baby audio monitor, so they could be heard in the living room before she switched off the light and left with Sara.   
"Now? What are your plans for now?" Sara asked.   
"Bedroom. Our guests are fine, we don't have to go back and continue where we left this morning. I want you in our bed, I want you naked and I want your hands all over me."  
"You're very demanding." Sara pulled the blonde into her arms and kissed her shortly. "What are you giving?"  
"Multiple orgasm?"  
"As a responsible mother you have to keep an ear on the baby."  
"Are you telling me our baby will ruin our sex life?"  
"Yes." The brunette chuckled. "First it will cry, then it will climb in our bed and at the end we'll stay awake the whole night and wait for it to come home."  
"Sounds like you want to talk me out of having a baby."  
"No, I tell you what will happen when we're parents."  
"We'll be a happy family." Sofia pushed her lover onto the bed. "With an extraordinary child. One that will sleep the whole night, gives us enough time for ourselves...not like your godchild!" They heard the cry of Eric.   
"He's gorgeous." Sara kissed Sofia, got up and left the room.  
"He stole my woman! She leaves me to look after him. And when her godchild cries, his sister will start soon too. Means, it will be my turn because for some reason I didn't hear, we don't let the parents look after the babies, we do it ourselves." The blonde sighed, got up and before she could reach the door, Sara came with Eric on her arm into the room.   
"Eric doesn't want to be in the room without somebody to look after him, somebody bigger than Jorja."  
"If anybody had told me you act like this a month ago, I'd have laughed my ass off."  
Sara grinned. "All for love."  
"Yeah...I hear my love, she protests that her brother is away." Sofia went into the other room and got Jorja on her arms. "You know, it's not fair, Eric gets taken out of bed and you're supposed to stay here alone. Come on, we have a look what your brother is doing."   
Eric was in Sara's arms, who sat on the bed. Satisfied with his new situation, the boy didn't cry anymore.   
"You look so beautiful, sitting on our bed, a baby in your arms, the perfect picture of a happy mother and her baby. If I had a hand free, I'd take a photo of you." Sofia sat next to Sara, put Jorja on the blanket and let her hand run over the belly of the girl.   
"I'm sure there'll be plenty of moments for you to take photos of."  
"Will you pamper our baby as much as you pamper Eric?"  
"What do you think?" Carefully Sara placed the boy next to his sister. Side by side, secured by the legs of the women so they couldn't roll off the bed, the babies were quiet and seemed to be happy.   
"I think you'll be a wonderful mother." Carefully Sofia slipped closer to her lover and kissed her.   
"Mhm, I realize there are talents I had no idea of they exist." She deepened the kiss. Who would have thought she'd be abso-lutely relaxed around babies one day. "I bet when we carry them back in their beds, they'll cry again."  
"Probably. Shall we leave them here a few more minutes? When they're sound asleep we take them back."  
"Okay." Sara pulled Sofia in her arms. A couple of minutes snuggling, watching the babies and calming down. After all those days of stress, of bad news and a lot of work, it was good just to sit here, do nothing and get your mind of everything. One more day for them, one more day without work, time to refill their batteries. Maybe she didn't want a champagne breakfast for tomorrow, maybe she wanted a breakfast on the beach with the dogs. Rantanplan and Scooby were their children, they had to make sure they were fine too.   
"Shall we..." Sara stopped. The eyes of her lover were closed and her chest moved evenly up and down, the blonde was sound asleep. Like a little angel on a white cloud, a little soft smile on her lips. Carefully Sara pulled her cell phone out of her pockets and took a photo of the scene. This was a picture, she needed for eternity. Her Sofia, her big love, asleep next to her and the twins in front of them. Today they were here with the babies of their friends, next year it would be their own child. With these thoughts their future together could only be wonderful.


End file.
